Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden scolded the White House Friday, saying it went too far in its efforts to keep some information secret.
That is hurting President Obama’s agenda, particularly on trade, by undermining the trust people need to work with the administration, the Oregon resident said.
At a breakfast hosted by the Christian Science Monitor, Wyden said the “biggest concern” he heard from people at a recent town hall regarding the administration’s trade agenda was “all of the secrecy that surrounds it.” He said the skeptics had “valid points” and the administration had no one to blame but itself.
“I will tell you, I think this excessive secrecy is nuts. I am going to use that word deliberately,” he said. Wyden is the co-sponsor of legislation introduced Thursday to renew Trade Promotion Authority, also known as “Fast Track.” The legislation would limit Congress to an up-or-down vote. It is being pushed by the White House, which wants Congress to pass it before any other trade deals are brought up for a vote.
Congressional critics of the administration’s trade policy have criticized the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office process for making the draft of proposed international deals available to lawmakers, arguing it is intentionally designed to frustrate them. Only the lawmakers and staffers with special clearance are allowed to see the documents, to prevent the details from leaking out, and they say that what is made available is incomplete and lacking context. Some lawmakers have complained that they are not even allowed to take notes.
Administration officials say the secrecy is necessary because the drafts of the trade deals contain “proprietary information” from business groups and other countries that cannot be made public.
Wyden said the secrecy is not only unnecessary but counterproductive. “Nobody is talking about giving out proprietary information about companies. Nobody is talking about giving out the secret [formula] in Coke here. We’re talking about people having some sense of what the debate is all about. What the issues are…If you believe strongly in trade, as I do, you shouldn’t be in favor of all of this excessive secrecy. The only thing excessive secrecy succeeds in doing is making people more cynical.
“What is everybody hiding here?”
His legislation would change that by making public notes of the trade negotiations in the future. Those and other documents would be available to Congress months before a final vote, he said.
For lawmakers and staffers who want even earlier access, the legislation would scrap the rules for viewing the documents.
“In the future, a staff member with clearance, say from the Finance Committee, will be able to go by themselves, see the documents, get the information and then discuss it with other members of Congress,” Wyden said.
