Breaking News

Obama Administration Faces Opposition Regarding Lack of Disclosure with Trade Pacts
Download PDF
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (No Ratings Yet)
Loading...

On Wednesday, legislation was introduced by Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, which would protest the refusal of the Obama administration to offer information about trade negotiations. There is a blockade against Wyden, who is the chair of a subcommittee on international trade. Wyden claims that his office was not allowed to see information regarding a possible pact known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which includes eight Pacific nations. The pact would stop ‘Buy American’ preferences for United States manufacturers and ban intellectual property standards that would ultimately increase the cost of prescription drugs across the world.

“The majority of Congress is being kept in the dark as to the substance of the TPP negotiations, while representatives of U.S. corporations — like Halliburton, Chevron, PhRMA, Comcast and the Motion Picture Association of America — are being consulted and made privy to details of the agreement,” Wyden said.

  
What
Where


Obama received a letter recently from 60 House Democrats and one House Republican that objected to the ban on ‘Buy American.’ Darrell Issa, a Republican from California and the House Oversight Committee Chairman, asked for better transparency in the negotiations and also posted the draft of the chapter regarding intellectual property on his website.

“U.S. TPP documents are available to members of Congress representing all Americans,” USTR said in a statement. Wyden’s office continues to claim that the administration has shared the information only with 12 members of Congress, which increases legal arguments that the only people in Congress allowed to see documents regarding trade are from the Congressional Oversight Group. A law passed in 2002 requires that all those in Congress should have access to trade documents.

The obstruction being committed by the Obama administration was discussed in a statement issued by Wyden’s office sent to the Huffington Post. The statement was issued by Wyden spokesperson Jennifer Hoelzer.

Get JD Journal in Your Mail

Subscribe to our FREE daily news alerts and get the latest updates on the most happening events in the legal, business, and celebrity world. You also get your daily dose of humor and entertainment!!




“Months ago, we were told our staffer could only view the documents if he got a clearance. So, he applied for the appropriate security clearance which was completed two months ago. Now, after two months of back and forth to try and get this resolved, it seems that the Administration is interpreting that 2002 law to say that only members on the Congressional Oversight Group or who work for members of the COG are allowed to see the agreements. If that is in fact their interpretation, it means that neither Senator Wyden nor his trade subcommittee staff are allowed to review documents pertaining to trade agreements.”





 

RELEVANT JOBS

Associate Attorney

USA-PA-Exton

ASSOCIATE ATTORNEY McKenna Snyder LLC, a law firm in Exton, PA has an immediate opening for an ex...

Apply now

Attorney

USA-MI-Sturgis

Qualifications: HaasCaywood is seeking associate attorneys for our Coldwater and Sturgis, Michiga...

Apply now

Attorney

USA-MI-Coldwater

Qualifications: HaasCaywood is seeking associate attorneys for our Coldwater and Sturgis, Michiga...

Apply now

Insurance Defense Trial Attorney/ Senior Counsel

USA-CA-San Francisco

Job description Trial Attorney - Personal Injury Defense Full Job Description Hickey Smith ...

Apply now

BCG FEATURED JOB

Locations:

Keyword:



Search Now

Education Law Attorney

USA-CA-El Segundo

El Segundo office of a BCG Attorney Search Top Ranked Law Firm seeks an education law attorney with ...

Apply Now

Education Law Attorney

USA-CA-Carlsbad

Carlsbad office of a BCG Attorney Search Top Ranked Law Firm seeks an education law attorney with 4-...

Apply Now

Education Law and Public Entity Attorney

USA-CA-El Segundo

El Segundo office of a BCG Attorney Search Top Ranked Law Firm seeks an education law and public ent...

Apply Now

Most Popular

SEARCH IN ARCHIVE

To Top