President asks for TPA

During President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address he asked that Congress grant him Trade Promotion Authority (TPA). The president, when discussing global competitiveness, said he was “asking both parties to give me trade promotion authority to protect American workers, with strong new trade deals from Asia and Europe that aren’t just free, but fair.”

With progress being made on the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement, the importance of passing the TPA has increased. The House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee will hold hearings on the U.S. trade agenda this week. Sen. Orin Hatch (R-UT) has said he would like the Senate Finance Committee to pass the TPA by the end of February.