SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Surprise! Corporate America Is Throwing Down for the TPP
Flurry of big business endorsements is likely aimed at building congressional momentum for mega-deal
Jan 05, 2016
American big business has now officially endorsed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), giving many all the proof they need that the 12-nation deal--poised to be the largest ever--is bad news for people and the planet.
An association of Chief Executive Officers known as the Business Roundtable (BRT) announced its formal backing on Tuesday, indicating that it plans to use its muscle to press Congress to approve the deal this year. In fact, BRT president John Engler told The Hill that the association wants the TPP to pass as quickly as possible--before the summer.
That endorsement followed Monday's announcement from the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) that it is throwing its weight behind the pact. "Open markets encourage cooperation and prosperity among nations and governments, rather than conflict, and the NAM has a long and proud history of promoting free and fair trade," said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.
With these two endorsements now established, some predict that the powerful U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be next.
To be sure, multinational corporations have already been heavily influential in the TPP negotiations, which have been conducted in near complete secrecy.
But the endorsements this week appear to be calculated to add momentum to the deal in Congress. Because the U.S. Senate passed Fast Track authority this summer, lawmakers will not be able to debate or amend the deal. But both houses must ratify the TPP, which will likely be submitted by the White House in the early spring.
Civil society groups are still holding out hope that grassroots pressure can persuade legislators to vote down the TPP.
And within those countries that are party to the deal--the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam--labor unions, environmental groups, community organizations, and grassroots social movements are vigorously opposing the accord with protests, open letters, and organizing.
When the full text of the TPP was finally released this fall, it confirmed what civil society groups around the world have long warned: the deal poses a profound threat to global health, the environment and climate, free speech, and Internet freedom.
Meanwhile, the history of the TPP's backers is telling. NAM alone has a track record of opposing legislation to address the climate crisis, was involved in a lawsuit to challenge U.S. rules requiring disclosure of blood diamonds, and has vigorously opposed disclosure of political spending.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is the editor of Workday Magazine and a contributing editor for In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
American big business has now officially endorsed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), giving many all the proof they need that the 12-nation deal--poised to be the largest ever--is bad news for people and the planet.
An association of Chief Executive Officers known as the Business Roundtable (BRT) announced its formal backing on Tuesday, indicating that it plans to use its muscle to press Congress to approve the deal this year. In fact, BRT president John Engler told The Hill that the association wants the TPP to pass as quickly as possible--before the summer.
That endorsement followed Monday's announcement from the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) that it is throwing its weight behind the pact. "Open markets encourage cooperation and prosperity among nations and governments, rather than conflict, and the NAM has a long and proud history of promoting free and fair trade," said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.
With these two endorsements now established, some predict that the powerful U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be next.
To be sure, multinational corporations have already been heavily influential in the TPP negotiations, which have been conducted in near complete secrecy.
But the endorsements this week appear to be calculated to add momentum to the deal in Congress. Because the U.S. Senate passed Fast Track authority this summer, lawmakers will not be able to debate or amend the deal. But both houses must ratify the TPP, which will likely be submitted by the White House in the early spring.
Civil society groups are still holding out hope that grassroots pressure can persuade legislators to vote down the TPP.
And within those countries that are party to the deal--the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam--labor unions, environmental groups, community organizations, and grassroots social movements are vigorously opposing the accord with protests, open letters, and organizing.
When the full text of the TPP was finally released this fall, it confirmed what civil society groups around the world have long warned: the deal poses a profound threat to global health, the environment and climate, free speech, and Internet freedom.
Meanwhile, the history of the TPP's backers is telling. NAM alone has a track record of opposing legislation to address the climate crisis, was involved in a lawsuit to challenge U.S. rules requiring disclosure of blood diamonds, and has vigorously opposed disclosure of political spending.
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is the editor of Workday Magazine and a contributing editor for In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
American big business has now officially endorsed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), giving many all the proof they need that the 12-nation deal--poised to be the largest ever--is bad news for people and the planet.
An association of Chief Executive Officers known as the Business Roundtable (BRT) announced its formal backing on Tuesday, indicating that it plans to use its muscle to press Congress to approve the deal this year. In fact, BRT president John Engler told The Hill that the association wants the TPP to pass as quickly as possible--before the summer.
That endorsement followed Monday's announcement from the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) that it is throwing its weight behind the pact. "Open markets encourage cooperation and prosperity among nations and governments, rather than conflict, and the NAM has a long and proud history of promoting free and fair trade," said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.
With these two endorsements now established, some predict that the powerful U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be next.
To be sure, multinational corporations have already been heavily influential in the TPP negotiations, which have been conducted in near complete secrecy.
But the endorsements this week appear to be calculated to add momentum to the deal in Congress. Because the U.S. Senate passed Fast Track authority this summer, lawmakers will not be able to debate or amend the deal. But both houses must ratify the TPP, which will likely be submitted by the White House in the early spring.
Civil society groups are still holding out hope that grassroots pressure can persuade legislators to vote down the TPP.
And within those countries that are party to the deal--the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam--labor unions, environmental groups, community organizations, and grassroots social movements are vigorously opposing the accord with protests, open letters, and organizing.
When the full text of the TPP was finally released this fall, it confirmed what civil society groups around the world have long warned: the deal poses a profound threat to global health, the environment and climate, free speech, and Internet freedom.
Meanwhile, the history of the TPP's backers is telling. NAM alone has a track record of opposing legislation to address the climate crisis, was involved in a lawsuit to challenge U.S. rules requiring disclosure of blood diamonds, and has vigorously opposed disclosure of political spending.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.