Thursday 25 June 2015

Senate votes for TPP fast track

Here we are on the fast track to dictatorial world government.
Small countries like New Zealand are likely to have to sign while relinquishing any national interests (such as dairy acces) to the interests of Empire

Senate puts Obama on fast-track to TPP


A group of protesters shout at senate offices as they demonstrate against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement on Capitol Hill in Washington June 23, 2015. (Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)

RT,
25 June, 2015

With a 60-38 vote, the Senate adopted the law giving President Obama the power to “fast-track” talks on free-trade pacts such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) after months of fierce debate in both houses of the Congress.

Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), as the measure is called, means that Congress will only get to vote up or down on the treaties in question once they are finalized by the White House, without the ability to offer amendments.
Obama has faced strong opposition from his own Democratic Party, with prominent lawmakers such as Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) in the Senate and Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in the House breaking ranks to speak and vote against the measure.

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers that usually oppose Obama at every turn by and large backed the president on the issue, though with some notable exceptions. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), one of the contenders for the Republican presidential nomination, voted against closing the debate on TAP on Tuesday.
After the measure barely squeaked by with 60 votes in favor, Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama) accused the US government of not serving the needs of its citizens, saying the White House “broke arms and heads” to scrape up the required majority.

When ordinary Americans who never asked for the plan, who don’t want the plan, who want no part of the plan, resist, they are scorned, mocked, and heaped with condescension,” Sessions said in a statement. “It is remarkable that so much energy has been expended on advancing the things Americans oppose, and preventing the things Americans want.”

Opposition by the Democrats meant a rocky road for the TPA in Congress. After losing thefirst procedural vote on May 12, the measure ended up passing the Senate on May 23. The House approved fast-track powers on June 12, but struck down the companion measure without which the proposal could not move forward – only to approve a standalone fast-track bill on June 18.


U.S. President Barack Obama. (Reuters / Jonathan Ernst)



House Democrats tried to hold TPA hostage by refusing to back Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), a program giving government aid to workers who lost their jobs as a consequence of free-trade deals. With the TPA’s passage, continued opposition to TAA made no sense. Pelosi, leader of the Democrats in the House, signaled she would back the bill when it came up for a vote later this week.
"TAA was being used as a bargaining chip for TPA, and that's why we very much resisted," Sandy Levin (D-Michigan) told reporters on Wednesday after a meeting of the Democratic Caucus.

Some Democrats were displeased that the Republican leadership in the House packaged the TAA with the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), but the caucus decided that opposing the measures would send the wrong message.
"It's disgusting that they were attached, but we have to play the hand we were dealt,” said G.K. Butterfield (D-NC), chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, adding he will vote in favor of the bill.
Many groups are opposed to the proposed free-trade pacts the White House has been negotiating in secrecy. Environmentalists object to the leaked language limiting US ability to legislate against climate change. Labor unions are concerned the pacts would result in more American jobs lost to overseas competition, as has happened with previous free-trade deals. While the conservatives favor the free trade aspects of the pacts, they have raised concerns over immigration and certain provisions that could supersede US sovereignty.


TAIHOA to TPPA - application for urgent Treaty hearing



Wednesday, 24 June 2015, 5:15 pm
Press Release: Joint Media Statement
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TAIHOA to TPPA

24 June 2015

A group of esteemed Māori leaders and academics, including Dr Papaarangi Reid, Moana Jackson, Rikirangi Gage, Angeline Greensill, Hone Harawira and Moana Maniapoto have filed a claim and application for urgent hearing today in the Waitangi Tribunal.

The claim alleges that the government’s actions in negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPPA) are a breach of the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles.

The claimants say that the TPPA procedurally and substantively prejudices them and undermines the guarantees to Māori under the Treaty to the exercise of their tino rangatiratanga in governance decisions that affect them.

The meeting of ministers to make final decisions on the TPPA is imminent. Adoption of the agreement by New Zealand will not require consent of Parliament, there is no mandatory involvement of Māori nor any obligation to assess the implications for the Treaty of Waitangi.

The TPPA negotiations have been conducted in secret and our government has not released the text.

Leaked documents have revealed a number of provisions that will allow multi-national corporations to sue governments for loss of anticipated profits resulting from legislation or regulation for protection of the environment, health and other legitimate government concerns. This is of grave concern to the claimants given their ongoing disputes over mining, forestry and water, and the failure of the government to implement effective smoke free policies. These cases are brought in Tribunals outside New Zealand which do not follow existing case law and in which Māori have no right to participate.

The government has also failed to protect Māori intellectual property rights in its negotiation of the TPPA; there is no consideration of the Waitangi Tribunal’s report on the Wai 262 report, Ko Aotearoa Tenei.

"Māori have been struggling to protect our culture in the face of an IP system that has never been a good fit for our people and culture. The experience of having my name trademarked by a company in Germany brought it home in a very personal way how much our language, culture and music is being appropriated left, right and center by companies. The WAI262 Claim reiterated that. There's been no movement by the government to undo existing agreements or legislation that fail to protect our culture. Yet the government wants to haul us all into a hefty - and very secret - international agreement that will disempower Māori even more? I am very concerned about this - especially given the track record of the key player, the US." says musician and documentary maker, Moana Maniapoto.

Māori health will also be jeopardised by intellectual property rules proposals to increase pharmaceutical monopoly rights and profits and make medicines less affordable. Māori are the most vulnerable to these changes.

The next steps in the Waitangi Tribunal process will involve a response by the Crown and other interested parties.

1 comment:

  1. The people of the United States are being sold down the corporate swanny river with the Senate's agreement to allow Obama the power to fast-track the TTP trade negotiations.

    Clearly the Senate has been hoodwinked and conned by Obama, as they have allowed something to be passed that is a secret and therefore know hardly anything about it by the sheer fact that this and other vast trade documents to date are secret even to US politicians, just like the American people who know absolutely nothing about the TTP and its ramifications.

    The projections are that 3 million more US jobs will go at least and probably many more over the years ahead. So apparently the Senate will allow Obama the power to fast-tract the TTIP also, where again projections by some leading economists is that another 3 million US jobs will go to low-cost labour economies when this trade deal is signed. - 'The TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) will be an Absolute Disaster for the People of the EU (European Union) and the People of America (USA) in the long-term - We simply have to Vote AGAINST this behind closed doors Transatlantic Trade deal before it is signed up and too late for the People to do anything about it' - http://worldinnovationfoundation.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/the-ttip-transatlantic-trade-and.html

    Are our politicians so insane to sign up to these job destroying trade deals that only puts ever more money into the pockets of the top super-rich 1%, that according to Credit Suisse 'Global Wealth Report' control 50% of the world's total wealth, you bet they will and in the process, destroy the 90% of our future generations to come the means to have a meaningful life? Corporations now control the world order and our political elites are mere pawns in the whole global mechanism of systematic control and subservience of the many.

    ReplyDelete

Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.