Liberal Democrats want to defeat legislation that would give the president authority to negotiate trade deals with minimal oversight from Congress. But that opposition doesn’t extend to calling on Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for their party’s presidential nomination, to come out against it.
Asked by the Washington Examiner during a call with reporters Thursday if Clinton should issue a statement outlining her position on the free-trade issue, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-N.Y., declined to directly answer.
Instead, DeLauro, who had earlier called the Trade Promotion Authority legislation “lipstick on a hog,” said that, given Clinton’s campaign rhetoric on equality, she expected that the candidate would come out against it eventually. “I am optimistic that she will come down on the right side of the issue,” DeLauro said.
Asked again if she thought Clinton should issue a statement clarifying her stance, DeLauro again demurred. “I just believe that she will come down on the right side of it. You know, this has been an individual who has never been fearful of standing up for what she believes in.”
None of the other half-dozen Democratic lawmakers participating in the call, all of whom vowed to help defeat Trade Promotion Authority, added any comments.
The refusal to call on Clinton to join their cause reflects the awkward position that both the candidate and the party find themselves in over Trade Promotion Authority, also known as “Fast Track.” The legislation would prohibit Congress from amending trade deals, allowing lawmakers to cast only a simple up-or-down vote on approving the deal.
Numerous liberal groups long skeptical of international trade deals have come out against the legislation, which was introduced Thursday by Sens. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis. The AFL-CIO, the Sierra Club and the Moveon.org, among others, issued statements blasting the legislation.
“We’ve seen enough executive branch overreach,” said Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, during the press call.
However, the legislation is a key part of President Obama’s trade agenda and the administration is pushing hard for Congress to pass it. Obama wants it passed before he brings the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a major 12 Pacific Rim nation trade deal, to Congress for a vote. Otherwise, he fears lawmakers will pick it apart.
While Clinton was an advocate of the Trans-Pacific Partnership while serving as President Obama’s secretary of state, it is not clear where she stands on Fast Track. As a New York senator, she voted against the legislation to renew Fast Track authority in 2002. However, her husband Bill Clinton used the authority he had as president under Fast Track to help pass the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement in 1994.
Thus, coming out in opposition of Fast Track would put her at odds with both the administration where she served as first lady and the one where served as the top official on international relations. Coming out in support would put her at odds with much of the party’s base as she tries to lock down the party’s presidential nomination with a minimum of drama.
