THE TRANS PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP - TPP

Anti-trade has become a major political issue in both major political parties in the 2016 election and has forced the candidates for president  to disavow foreign trade.  Without doubt, automobile assemblers in Michigan and some other states have been hurt by NAFTA, even though, over all, there was a net gain in jobs in America.*  The fact that those workers left out of the benefits of free trade did not get any Adjustment Assistance (for what this is, see below) is a failure of government and not of the trade deal.   I suspect that few of those against foreign trade know of this program.  This is the target they should be aiming at and not foreign trade. Below are excerpts from the Guardian and the Washington Post on the Trans Pacific Partnership.  Bolding and underlining have been added for emphasis.

From the Guardian:
But the reality is that, if two sides willingly trade, it can be assumed that both are better off; otherwise, one of them would refuse to trade. So, while trade liberalisation may entail some (smaller) losses for certain groups, these can – and should – be addressed through domestic relocation and assistance schemes, such as America’s Trade Adjustment Assistance programme, [See note on the Trade Assistance Program below]and transition rules for affected industries, firms, and workers.
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At a time when growth is failing to meet expectations almost everywhere, the TPP thus seems like a good move. To be sure, because tariffs in the TPP member countries are already low (with some exceptions, such as Canada’s tariffs on dairy products and Japan’s on beef), the net benefit of eliminating them would be modest (except for a few items that are very sensitive to small price changes). But the TPP is also expected to reduce non-tariff barriers (such as red tape and protection of state enterprises); harmonise policies and procedures; and include dispute-settlement mechanisms.
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That would be a major loss. Allowing existing protectionist trade barriers to remain in place – or worsen – would not only deprive citizens in TPP countries of higher incomes; it would also deal a damaging blow to international cooperation.***

And from the Washington Post:

The security effects of trade agreements can be significant — indeed, one could argue that this was the most important thing about the North American Free Trade Agreement, the deal that has caused DeLong such existential angst. It’s worth remembering that prior to NAFTA, Mexico had a … let’s say “fraught” relationship with the United States. NAFTA made it clear to U.S. policymakers that Mexico was now a key partner and merited treatment as such. Which is why the United States helped Mexico in the mid-1990s and during the 2008 financial crisis. And the lock-in effects of NAFTA also helped Mexico transition from a one-party-dominated state to a true multiparty democracy.****

The Trade Assistance Program The Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Program is a federal program that provides a path for employment growth and opportunity through aid to US workers who have lost their jobs as a result of foreign trade. The TAA program seeks to provide these trade-affected workers with opportunities to obtain the skills, resources, and support they need to become reemployed. The program benefits and services that are available to individual workers are administered by the states through agreements between the Secretary of Labor and each state Governor. Program eligibility, technical assistance, and oversight are provided by the US Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration's Office of Trade Adjustment Assistance.(https://www.doleta.gov/tradeact/factsheet.cfm)


* http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-american-economy-great-recovery.html
*** https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/oct/30/tpp-trans-pacific-partnership-the-case-for-trade
**** https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/05/07/the-trans-pacific-partnership-is-about-more-than-trade/

U.S. NOW EXPORTING OIL NEAR RECORD LEVELS

In July, the U.S. exported 441,000 bbl of oil a day.*  The forecast is for the U.S. to export a million barrels a day, exceeding our 1957 export peak!  Also a forecast is that we will be at record oil exports by the end of the year.

If we are exporting oil, apparently we are now independent of importing significant amounts of oil so we then can get out of the Middle East - Right?  We don't need the Keystone XL Pipeline.  We don't need to explore ANWAR for oil in Alaska.  We don't need to import any oil from Canada.  Heck, most of our exports are TO Canada (93%).*  If we are more than selfsufficent in oil so that we can export it, we can stop the expansion of fracking and polluting our land.

If we are not self sufficient in oil, then we should not be exporting it. I'm finding this to be very depressing.

* http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-30/rising-u-s-crude-exports-move-closer-to-1957-record.html?wpisrc=nl-wonkbk&wpmm=1