Posted on 05/13/2015 3:22:23 PM PDT by Plummz
(MANCHESTER, N.H. — ) Frustrated by being required to find his way to a private “dungeon” to read the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement, Rand Paul said Monday he is a “no vote” on a provision to allow President Obama to complete the deal on a fast track.
The Republican presidential candidate said in an interview in Manchester he will vote against granting Obama trade promotion authority, which limits Congress to only up or down votes on trade deals. A vote on “TPA” is expected as early as Tuesday on the Senate floor.
The Kentucky senator spent part of the day in New Hampshire before heading back to Washington for a late afternoon vote.
He held a town hall at the Londonderry Lions Club, an event that was at least partially overshadowed by a top New Hampshire staffer licking the camera lens of a pro-Democratic video tracker. The video of David Chesley quickly went viral on social media.
Paul told WMUR.com the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement “is being held under lock and key” by the Obama administration “because they’re afraid that if the public knows what we are going to vote on, that somehow that would destroy the republic.”
Members of Congress must go to office of the U.S. Trade Representative to see a copy of the agreement, but are not allowed to take notes, make copies or bring any members of their staffs.
“I’ve told leadership I’m a ‘no’ vote” on trade promotion authority, Paul said. “I’m hesitant to give blanket authority on stuff we haven’t seen. I’m not saying there wouldn’t be a time I could be for it, if I’d seen the trade agreement, and it’s fine,” Paul said.
“I still might vote for the trade agreement, but I hate giving up power. We give up so much power from Congress to the presidency, and with them being so secretive on the treaty, it just concerns me what’s in the treaty,” he said.
(Update: On Monday night, Matthew McAlvanah, spokesman for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, issued the following statement:
"The text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations has been available for members of Congress to read since 2012 at their request. Earlier this year, the administration took the additional step of placing copies of the text in the Capitol building for members of Congress to review at their convenience.
"Members of Congress can bring staffs and take notes when they review the document. A number of Senators have chosen to read the text. In addition, once the negotiations are complete, the full text of the agreement will be available for the public and members of Congress to review for two months before the president even signs the agreement in the first place and many more months before any vote in Congress is ever taken."
McAlvanah continued, "It is simply untrue that members of Congress must go to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to see the text. The procedures that are followed regarding TPP are consistent with the procedures of the Senate for handling other classified material.
"Trade Promotion Authority cedes no authority to the president whatsoever. It is a law that provides the adminstration instructions on what to negotiate, imposes requirements on the administration for congressional consultation, and reiterates that Congress must approve any agreement before it can enter into force.")
Oy. Sorry about that!
Cruz betrayed us .
He voted for cloture so he voted to destroy the Treaty laws in our constitution which requires 66 votes .
He voted to make it only 51 votes to pass this Amnesty trojan horse bill which the evil one can easily get from our traitorous GOP snakes.
With the treaty 66 treaty rule gone the evil Soros prop in the WH can change the treaty because it has a clause that leaves it open for The Evil to make any changes he wants after the final vote ! Sessions and Cotton and Lee betrayed us too. The gop is lost in the senate.
They are all hiding from us !
They want to ram thru this Amnesty bill quickly before us bubbas got wise to it.
see post#8
No problem at all FRiend...take it from one who still knows how to use a slide rule and even an RPN calculator! :)
:) Thanks.
Rumor is that the Trans Pacific Partnership (aka TPP) treaty has guns and ammo ban which violates the 2nd Amendment.
and
http://www.wnd.com/2015/01/2nd-amendment-threatened-in-obamas-trade-plans/
Yes, the list is correct. Go here:
Paul Teller was contacted by email.
The word is getting out and people are just as mad as you. I have seen so many times the Republicans getting snookered by Zer0. I am wondering if the cocktail circuit in the District of Corruption is pickling the Republican minds.
This is a massive slave labor Trojan Horse meant to destroy the US middle class .
Soros and his WH props have wanted to destroy the US and now this treaty give them a Open Ended treaty that can be changed to shift millions of white collar jobs elsewhere and drag in millions of third world Dem voters ! Just Like Net neutrality was devised in 2009'. Soros had this evil scheme set up once his prop arrived in 2009! His prop is leaving and they have to act Now or Never .
It was a cloture vote which is the key vote and the only vote that mattered !
Once Mitchy had Cloture out of the way.
The fast track monster could be rammed thru with a simple majority vote and that evil Mitch had those fellow K street bagman already lined up to pass it!
Sadly, It was a complete sell out to K street over the American workers including white collar jobs too which will be going overseas too.
Members of Congress must go to office of the U.S. Trade Representative to see a copy of the agreement, but are not allowed to take notes, make copies or bring any members of their staffs.
Most transparent administration ever!
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