You down with TPP?

[angus]

Inspired by ERM65man's thread about a potential presidential veto.

You down with TPP?  Yeah, you know me.
Who’s down with TPP?  Every last homey.

[angus]

No, the American people don't want this, which is why both the left and the right campaigned against it last year. The American people own the country, not the people drawing up and signing these deals.

That's a good post, and it deserves a response.  It is true that the will of the people should not be discounted, and it is true that there are some disadvantages of the Trans-Pacific Partnership bill--as currently written--but consider the advantages.

Primarily, it helps us to fill a power vacuum.  I'm not a big hard- or soft-power projectionist, but I can see that the world's richest nation for the first five thousand years of recorded history, which was knocked off balance by its 500 year isolationist policies, is about to become the world's richest nation again.  Back in the day, it didn't matter so much to the major players (Egypt, Rome, the Sacrum Imperium, Spain, etc.), partly because information didn't travel at the speed of light and partly because no one had the means to annihilate all humanity at that time, but nowadays it does.  There are a million other reasons to support the TPP, but I think that our national security is probably the most compelling.

I've been on Obama's bandwagon for a long time regarding this issue, and I'm glad to learn that some Democrats and some Republicans are becoming convinced as well, but delving into the minutiae required to defend it exhausts me.  Today I searched and found an interesting report.  Take a look: 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-passing-the-trans-pacific-partnership-will-be-good-for-america/2016/09/27/5fcd31b4-8386-11e6-a3ef-f35afb41797f_story.html?utm_term=.a3caffb118a4

I know that it's one sided, but that's the point:  it is trying to persuade you.  When you have a moment, read it and see if you don't think that it is well argued.

[angus]

48 hours after the poll opened, I see that only 14 had an opinion, or cared to vote.  Among those, 43 percent favor the bill and 57 percent oppose it.  

What's interesting is that it (sort of) mirrors a recent Harvard-Politico poll from September.  They found that more than 70% had never heard of it.  "TPP who?"  Among the 29% who had heard of it, they were split, although it wasn't an even split:  about 60% against and about 40% support.  

Some other findings include:

— Americans are much more concerned about trade with China and Mexico, two of Trump’s most frequent targets, than with other countries.

— About 40% of Americans know China is not a member of the TPP deal; the rest believe it is or aren't sure.

— Midwesterners harbor the most concern about free trade, with more than half saying trade deals have hurt their communities.

— More Americans oppose boosting trade with the UK to help it with its exit from the European Union than support the idea, despite our closer relationship with UK than with Europe.

— More than half of Americans think the economy has stayed the same or gotten worse since the 2008 downturn.

— The vast majority of Americans favor government policies to bring jobs back to the U.S., but only a quarter think those policies would be very effective.

— Republicans are more against free trade agreements, generally, than Democrats, which is a stark contrast from a Pew research survey about ten years ago during which Democrats generally were more against free trade agreements than Republicans.

Find the results of the Harvard-Politico poll in pdf here.

[angus]

I also find the ISDS provision extremely concerning.

How's that?  The ISDS is just a legal system to protect investors.  Intellectual property must be recognized in order to recruit investment, especially in places that don't have a long history with the concept of intellectual property.