TPP not a fair trade

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is billed as a boon for Washington. But there is a dark side, one that has motivated millions of people to march, rally and write their legislators.

It was written over five years, in secret, by the corporations who will benefit. It is more than 5,000 pages and only five of 29 chapters deal with trade. It was released for Congress to examine, and was immediately placed on a fast track to speed the vote along.

Trade is a powerful economic and geo-political lever, and the TPP gives a handful of private attorneys (with corporate bias), power over our democratically elected legislators to make decisions on sensitive international trade matters.

It creates an investor state dispute resolution by which corporations can sue TPP governments over any policy that may undermine expected future profits. For example, TransCanada recently filed suit against the United States for $15 billion over the denial of the Keystone Pipeline.

“Harmonization” of trade will supersede states’ rights to legislate for important protections such as genetically modified organism labeling, a ban on fracking or neonicinoids. TPP calls for us to sacrifice our democracy for the potential of increased trade. This is not a fair trade.

Stacy Cossey

Valleyford