MSNBC "The Ed Show" - Transcript: Trans-Pacific Partnership

Interview

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All of the negotiations have been buying close doors. And Congress has bee giving the limited access to negotiation documents. Congressman Mark Pocan of Wisconsin is expressing concerns with the deal and its encouraging Congress not to fast track the agreement for approval.

Congressman Pocan joins us tonight here on the ED Show. Congressman, you have seen this. I realized because of security issues. There`s always so much that you could tell us but what are your main concersn about the TPP?

REP. MARK POCAN, (D) WISCONIN: Well, the Trans-Pacific Partnership is the biggest and baddest of the trade deals yet. It has so many countries and so many economic interests they`re involved, and yet, it`s the same problems we`ve seen in the past on labor standards, environmental standards, food safety. It has a great potential to take away more American jobs and really hurt the middleclass in America.

So we`re very concerned about what is coming out. One of the things last, last week was the White House was announcing that this could be finished and negotiated by the end of the year.

SCHULTZ: It is true that there would be a stipulation that we could actually lose our sovereignty through multinational corporations who have a hard time dealing with the United States law that they would go to a higher power of decision making process to make sure that they could get their products into the United States?

POCAN: Yes. One of the problems with these trade deals, and again, well to see the exact language that comes out that but I have no reason to believe and I`ve seen some of the language. I have had chance to sit down with the combined record tax, the actual language we`re negotiating that this is definitely not going to be any better than any of the past deals and could potentially be worst.

When you take a country like Vietnam and put into it, you know, they don`t have any labors standards. There are some real problems. So when it comes to corporate ability to usurp laws whether it be a state laws or individual nation laws, that`s when part some of the past trade deals. I`m expecting it will be part of this trade deal.

SCHULTZ: And are there provisions that we have to as a country except so many products from their country?

POCAN: Well, it all depends on the exact language but very likely, if we would do something, for example, by American Provision, I use to have Buy American Provision when I was in our legislator back in Wisconsin. This would take away our ability to have things like that, buy American laws, buy local laws.

That`s part of the problems that we have with -- to give away so much
authority --

SCHULTZ: Well, that`s traps America right there?

POCAN: Exactly. It`s a huge problem.

SCHULTZ: I mean -- you mean international trade deal would tell the Congress what laws they could pass when it comes to our own products.

POCAN: In a company like you said the multinational corporation could challenge a states law or the U.S. law even based on if they`re losing access to a market which could take away our ability to do something like Buy American or even, you know, things around food safety.

SCHULTZ: So how do the Democrats run around the country talking about their for the middleclass and sign on to something like things and we`re just giving the basics here?

POCAN: Well the good news is right now we are aggressively -- I`m working with Rosie Deluro (ph) and George Miller (ph), and Louise Slaughter, we`re getting people to sign a letter to say don`t go so fast to fast-track. We want to have say as Congress. I`m guessing we`ll have a majority the Democrats signed that letter by the time it`s done.

But we`re doing everything we can to even though in the middle of the craziness that`s going on in Washington, we`re trying and make sure we`re not looking at this and make sure we`re ready for that fight.

SCHULTZ: Why there are 600 corporate consultants who know more about it than the members of Congress?

POCAN: And that`s part of the problem. The people that are supposedly the professionals who help negotiate these things are have to have input to it when I have to make sure that in the middleclass families in South Central Wisconsin. The companies in my district are still able to do business like they`ve always and we don`t want to give away that ability to Vietnam which could happen.

SCHULTZ: I want to give air time to anybody who`s a proponent of this is going to tell me it`s going to be good for the American economy. I have not seen or heard that case made as of yet. Congressman Mark Pocan, thanks for the fight. I appreciate you`re sticking it up for American workers.

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