If You Really Think TPP Is About 'Trade' Then Your Analysis Is Already Wrong
from the don't-fall-for-the-marketing. dept
George Mason University professor Bill Schneider recently had an interesting blog post over at Reuters in which he discusses how Hillary Clinton is in a tough spot concerning the TPP and TTIP agreements, in that much of the Democratic party is now vehemently against these "trade" deals, while historically, the Clintons have been for them. The piece argues that whichever side Hillary takes will create a problem for her presidential campaign. The politics in the piece may be right, but almost the entire thing is built on the assumption that the TPP agreement really is about "trade" and that such an agreement will lead to cheaper goods and such. Take this passage for example:Trade is not an ideological issue. It’s a populist issue — the people versus the establishment. Ordinary Americans are suspicious of trade deals. Economists have a hard time understanding this, but most people see trade not as an economic issue but as a moral issue.I don't think that's actually what people are thinking at all, but even if we run with it, it's based on the very faulty premise that these agreements have anything to do with free trade at all. As we've discussed in the past, they do not. They are quite clearly often about the opposite of free trade. In the past, we've strongly recommended Michael Goodwin's epic comic about TPP where he shows how it's really got little to do with free trade, and everything to do with the ability to move investment capital around:
People think it’s wrong for them to benefit as consumers from lower prices for foreign-made goods if it throws Americans out of work. Will they purchase the foreign-made goods? Of course they will — as long as they’re cheaper. That’s rational economic behavior. They just don’t think they should be allowed to.
As the opportunities for trade liberalization have dwindled, the nature of trade agreements has shifted. They're no longer just about removing barriers to trade. They've become a mechanism for setting global economic rules more generally.If you make the facile assumption that the TPP is actually about free trade, then you might be confused about all the hubbub about it. If you actually take the time to understand that much of what's in there has nothing to do with free trade and, in fact, may be the opposite of free trade, you realize why there's so much concern.
This trend is alarming to Simon Lester, a free trader at the Cato Institute. "We've added in these new issues that I'm skeptical of," he says. "It's not clear what the benefits are, and they cause a lot of controversy."
And this system for setting global rules has some serious defects. We expect the laws that govern our economic lives will be made in a transparent, representative, and accountable fashion. The TPP negotiation process is none of these — it's secretive, it's dominated by powerful insiders, and it provides little opportunity for public input.
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Filed Under: free trade, hillary clinton, investment, non-tarriff barriers, regulations, secrecy, tpp, trade, trade agreements, ttip
Reader Comments
The First Word
“Actually, it IS about trade...
It's about trading our last remaining freedoms for even more corporate profits.Subscribe: RSS
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tpp girl
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Actually, it IS about trade...
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Actually, it's about corporations detaching themselves from the natural checks and balances of lowly consumer market forces. They don't want to have to bother with our "Hey, that's not right. I'm not buying!" provincialism. Mobility for them; not for you.
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Nothing will derail her campaign
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I hear you, but that's not really accurate. Congresscritters (et al) will sell themselves for pennies on the dollar. Ie., lobbyists send a couple thousand off to bought politicos who will then write laws favorable to them worth $[mb]illions. Politicians are really cheap dates. They can't wait to rip their clothes off for us to be ravaged. I almost want to feel sorry for the bastards. You'd think they might have a better understanding of their potential worth in selling us out, but they'll take anything it appears, no matter how little is offered.
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Re: Nothing will derail her campaign
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Revisionist history much?
Say what? They are being worked on right now, well into a democratic presidency. One who promised transparency but has kept the negotiations secret. This first sentence is so full of itself as to make me question the whole article.
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Re: Revisionist history much?
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Yes, they're being pushed by a Democratic executive, but nearly all of the Democrats in Congress (with just a few exceptions) are against it. On the whole, the Democratic party is mostly now against these trade deals.
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I believe that "much of the Democratic party" is referring to voters, not candidates and office holders. Which is good. The sooner both parties' voters come to understand that their party's candidates suck every bit as badly as do the other party's candidates, the sooner we might get to fixing the broken system.
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The 2 that come to mind every time I hear her name mentioned.
"what does it matter" (Benghazi people that died because she could not be bothered to do her job)
and
"We are dead broke" (since having hundreds of millions is apparently poor in Hilary's mind
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No candidate is without fault, and it is good to criticize them for things they have actually done wrong. Pointing at a wall where the mud has stuck does little to promote the further discussion of things that may be helpful.
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The author uses Vox (left) and the Cato Institute (right) to justify his conclusions? He also points out that organized labor and big pharma and copyright industries and more use these trade agreements as a secretive, anti-democratic process to force through regulations they want.
Hard to believe that the AFL-CIO is publicly against it when their real plan is to use it to further their anti-democratic aims to force through regulations.
Overall I think it was a weak article. Anyone who reads any major news outlet (WaPo, BBC, CBS - were just a few sites that explained the issue more clearly than this article) would know that free trade in today's world encompasses much more than things like getting Japan to open their markets to US autos or agricultural goods.
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Vox is not left or right. It's just a news publication. Cato is libertarian, not "right." Either way, the point was not about the ideological leanings of anyone, but the actual content. Do you have concerns about that?
Hard to believe that the AFL-CIO is publicly against it when their real plan is to use it to further their anti-democratic aims to force through regulations.
In the past, organized labor was very effective in using these deals -- but haven't been able to get their ideas into TPP this time around, which is why they're so against it.
Overall I think it was a weak article. Anyone who reads any major news outlet (WaPo, BBC, CBS - were just a few sites that explained the issue more clearly than this article) would know that free trade in today's world encompasses much more than things like getting Japan to open their markets to US autos or agricultural goods.
But most people still assume it's about *trade*. And it's not. That's the point.
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As far at the rest of your comment. Two things. First, If Obama is at the table, organized labor has a voice in the negotiations. Second, It's not just about trade, but that's been true of trade pacts for decades. Nothing new here.
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We've always said that we're an opinion blog. But we're not *partisan*. We don't cheer on a particular team for the sake of their uniforms.
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1. prejudiced in favor of a particular cause.
"newspapers have become increasingly partisan"
synonyms: biased, prejudiced, one-sided,
discriminatory, colored, partial, interested, sectarian,
factional.
It's not about the uniforms.
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Also from Google, in reference to politics, which the way most people use this term:
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not biased or partisan, especially toward any particular political group. synonyms: unbiased, impartial, neutral, objective "the moderator must remain nonpartisan throughout the debates"
Still wouldn't classify TechDirt as unbiased, impartial, neutral, or objective. TechDirt's opinion pieces present a point of view. They claim to be *non-partisan* in that they are not biased toward a particular political group. This claim falls apart when they advocate for a particular point of view which is shared by a particular political group even though that group may not align with either of the mainstream political parties. The fact that TechDirt criticizes both republicans and democrats does not make them non-partisan.
Not criticizing TechDirt for their point of view, only their claim that their point of view is not politically biased or partisan (adjective).
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You are confusing partisanship with advocating an idea on it's own merits.
The fact that TechDirt criticizes both republicans and democrats does not make them non-partisan.
If one is using "partisan" in the colloquial sense, than yes, the fact that TechDirt criticizes both republicans and democrats makes them absolutely non-partisan.
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There are many on the left who criticize both the democrats and the republicans with equal measure as is true for many on the right. That doesn't make them non-partisan, that just makes them critical of the major political parties.
Never the less, based on partisanship as you define it, would you consider the Occupy Wall Street movement partisan or non-partisan?
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I would say that originally OWS protests were non-partisan. Their stated mission was against social and economic inequality worldwide.
That's not to say that the movement wasn't eventually co-opted into a political partisan issue by those on both sides.
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I disagree. Obama is less hostile to unions than many other politicians, but he's a long way from being able to represent them in any negotiations.
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First, meeting frequently with the head of the AFL-CIO doesn't automatically mean that they are in agreement. It could very well be that they are not, and Trunka is trying hard to change that. (To be clear, I'm speaking purely from logic here. Frequent meetings like that certainly do suggest an amiable relationship.)
Second, Trunka is the head of one specific union. That Obama may be representing the interests of that union in no way suggests that he is representing the interests of unions generally.
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Are you even remotely aware of Tim Lee's history? He's the one who wrote the article, and he is not, in any way imaginable, a "left-leaning" reporter.
Either way WHO GIVES A FUCK about red team/blue team? This isn't about that.
Second, It's not just about trade, but that's been true of trade pacts for decades. Nothing new here.
Well, yes, there's a lot new here, but mainly the whole point of the article was that some supposed "expert" insisted it WAS about trade. So, clearly plenty of people still think it is, which is why I wrote this article.
Not sure what your complaint is other than that you have some weird issue with identifying which "team" people are on.
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Are you even remotely aware of Tim Lee's history? He's the one who wrote the article, and he is not, in any way imaginable, a "left-leaning" reporter.
I never accused Tim of being a left leaning reporter.
the whole point of the article was that some supposed "expert" insisted it WAS about trade. So, clearly plenty of people still think it is, which is why I wrote this article.
From the article you reference on Vox:
In addition to conventional trade issues like tariff rates, it includes language on labor rights, environmental laws, copyright and patent protections, e-commerce, state-owned enterprises, corruption, and government procurement.
Your article says these agreements have nothing to do with free trade. Convention trade issues are about free trade, so at least some part of the agreement is about free trade, yes?
Three.
Not sure what your complaint is other than that you have some weird issue with identifying which "team" people are on.
I try to understand all sides of an issue so I read from sources on different sides of the political spectrum. That seems weird to you?
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You panned the Vox article as "left-leaning." The author, Tim Lee, has a long history working for libertarian and/or right-leaning organizations.
From the article you reference on Vox:
No, I was talking about the first link, the article from Reuters, in which the guy insisted it was about trade.
I try to understand all sides of an issue so I read from sources on different sides of the political spectrum. That seems weird to you?
No. Nor did I say that. Putting words in my mouth doesn't make you look good.
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You can leave out the personal attacks, unless you can't defend your points based on their merits.
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What does the author think that populism is, if not an ideology?
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Freedom of trade
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Perosnally, I thought this was obvious from the start. I'll admit, though, that my Democratic friends didn't understand this until a couple of years of his presidency had passed.
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TPP = Traitors Protecting Profit
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It's obviously not about trade
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TPP & Global Treaties; Global Treaties Not about How Much Trade, but, How to & Who to Trade with
Global Treaties Not about How Much Trade, but, How to & Who to Trade with and 'Undermine' AIIB.
Corporate America, Wall St., Congress; Deluded, or, Deluding; IGNORAMUS et IGNORABIMUS?
Just Blame & Punish/Sue Info Deprived Citizens of US, EU, Canada, et al.
TPP, TTIP, CETA, et al, Shareholders 'Personna non Gratus'; Shareholders' Meetings I.D. Toxic Neighbors, In-laws,
Investment Houses, et al.
Time to Cool off the 'Stockbrokers' again; Buy Gold?
The limited number of direct beneficiaries of the TPP, TTIP (China -Canada Investment Treaty) & the other global treaties (ie. the global corporate leaders & their 'preferred' shareholders), are most desperate to keep from the prying, due diligence eyes of the of the potential global un-preferred shareholders' & the harmless NON shareholders.
The fact of the matter is, the flurry of global treaties have very little to do with trade. The treaties are about 'preferred' trading partners who are successfully attempting to legitimize for the signatories of the treaty/'Arrangements', settlements of the TPP's 'contrived' disputes, et al, by enabling the parties to alleged 'disputes' to use non adversarial settlements whereby,
the corporations & preferred shareholders 'merely' shift all of their costs from themselves to the harmless NON shareholder & the un-preferred shareholders, ie. the general public/individual taxpayers.
These costs include the costs of determining:
1) which harmless non shareholders will have to pay corporations & some SHAREHOLDERS ('preferred' SHAREHOLDERS) for the corporations' 'mistakes', contrivances, unrealistic, &/or, any expectations, etc.,
2) how high (win-fall) the punitive penalties, awards, damages, etc. will be
without the harmless NON shareholder being represented throughout the determination
of, not, if the NON shareholders are guilty, but, 'merely' how 'guilty' the harmless NON shareholders are with no means/opportunity to appeal the decisions by way of the Treaties' ('Death-Star-Chamber') new superseding, cyber jurisdiction Tribunals,
&
3) et al.
For Further Information, see,
'TPP & Global Treaties & Anti AIIB' below.
Also see;
'The Submission' to The SUPREME COURT of CANADA:
"The SHAREHOLDERS & Corporations of AMERICA, Australia, Canada, the EU, et al
v
the harmless Canadian NON shareholders, both; Native & non Native, et al"
including
'The MERKEL (Chancellor of Germany) Letter; To Sue, or, Be Sued?'
(see; davidehsmith.wordpress.com)
***
TPP & GLOBAL TREATIES;
IS HOLLYWOOD PART of the (TPP Global Treaty & Anti AIIB) PROCESS, or, OUT-of-the LOOP, too?
- L.A. Times, Apr. 7, 2015, blog
It may regrettable that the simplest & most basic information & questions that can lead to a much more secure & profitable relationship between the potential signatories of the TPP & China, et al, has not been shared with Defense Secretary Carter for his humble consideration. Perhaps, he may consider answering some of the enclosed questions in order for us to get a better idea of what his understanding is of how the TPP & other Global Treaties can be vastly improved inclusively & thereby, minimize, &/or, eliminate the dangerous problems below that have led some to understand that
'What the TREATY of VERSAILLES was to the 20th century (ie. provided the basis for World War II) PALES in COMPARISON to the TPP, CETA, C-CIT, NAFTA, et al, in the 21st'.
Unless, of course, the long term economic destabilization and subsequent (secret) military weapons development & appropriations are the intent of DefSec Carter, et al, in the secret (Death-Star-Chamber) 'arrangements' of the TPP & the Global Corporate Treaties/Agreements.
***
But, how many 'savvy' Americans & their global corporate associates are 'poised' to make windfall profits from their international cross investments, 'nest-feathered' lawsuits & preplanned treaty 'arrangements' at the direct expense of the harmless non shareholders, ie. 95% - 99% of America , et al?
***
While the good sales folks of Wall St. may prefer to tell their 'Enron-able' customers who were also the victims of 'The Preliminary Foray of The Wall St. Meltdown', et al, that it's just some Unions that are fighting back, how much of the Fighting Back of Unions against the Secret, Unethical & Anti-Democratic Arrangements of The Global Treaties' 'Death-Star-Chamber' Tribunals, can be understood in the context of the harmless NON Shareholders, including Union members, fighting to Survive (not 'thrive') Against the Uncaring, 'Profits at Any (body else's) Costs', SHAREHOLDERS & their Colluding, Global Corporate Leaders?
- Washington Post, blog, Mar. 25, 2015
TPP & GLOBAL TREATIES;
Gain a political 'Smidge', Lose ('Hidden' & Secret Costs) a Lot; The NET EFFECT. There goes Our Retirement Date & Much more...
How to Discourage Corporate 'USA's', et al, 'Need' to Fleece Harmless Non-shareholders & Globally Expand & Dilute $17 Trillion Debt; Secret TPP, TTIP, et al, Globalizes Wall St.'s Unregulated 'Eron- Derivatives' Transgressions. Too Big, BigGER, BIGGEST to be 'Allowed' to Fail?
'Fast Tracking', TPP corp. 'U.S.'s' Feeble Attempt to Avoid Court; SHAREHOLDERS & NON Shareholders Await Supreme Court's Findings to Proceed. 'But, I didn't know that that I'd have to pay for it (& somebody else doesn't)!'
Global Corporate Economy Conniving to Get Harmless NON Shareholders to Pay Trillion$ in Court Costs, Punitive 'Penalties', etc.?
No Treaties = Corporations/SHAREHOLDERS pay for Their Own 'Mistakes'.
How Many Preferred Shares of TPP, C-CIT, TTIP, CETA, et al, Generated Enterprises are You Selling your Right to Sue the Global Corporate Economy for? 'New' Shareholders Can Say 'NO' to & Over-Rule TPP, CETA, TTIP, et al, Plans?
Will corp.'USA' et al, & Feds to Prepay $Billions for All 'Trade' Treaty/'Arrangements', et al, Secret ('Death-Star-Chamber) Tribunals' Punitive Damages to Protect Home State's Taxpayers? Other States, Municipalities, et al, "...(we) need to control corp. USAs 'Contributions' “.
But, If Not PUTIN; 'The WHITE KNIGHT', then Who Do YOU Want to Bankroll the Saving of the harmless NON shareholders of the World from Fast Tracking TPP's, CETA's (TTIP) Secret 'Death-Star-Chamber' Tribunal Penalties?
Will China, Iran, the Muslim World, et al, Support Putin in Suits?
How about Warren Buffett, &/or, the 'coveted' Hong Kong investor, et al?
***
FULL Article, see; davidehsmith.wordpress.com
***
Please consider sharing the enclosed information & questions with 10 friends who will share it with 10 others...
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Does that mean politicians' analyses are wrong, then?
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Actually, Politicians don't think (I should probably stop there) that TPP is about Free Trade.
They know its about trading public freedom for corporate control, increasing corporate profits (and thus increasing their own kickbacks from corporations), and installing protectionist laws in a manner that avoids all the safeguards against bad laws, but a politician never got anywhere by admitting he knew the truth.
The very art of politics is the ability to lie believably and convincingly.
When the public begins to distrust its government, you will often hear politicians speak about government's loss of public confidence.
Did you know that the "con" part of the term "Con-Man", is an abbreviation for the word "confidence"?
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