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

Interview

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SCHULTZ: That is something that is going to be hard to unwind. There`s no question about it. Lee Fang, great reporting, thank you for your time tonight. Let`s bring in Senator Bernie Sanders, Independent from Vermont. Senator, how do you unwind this? This is almost like a special society that runs America power and influence at its best.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS, (I) VERMONT: Well, Ed, let me talk about power and influence and tell you that there was a recent study that just came out that show that network television does not talk about the TPP. This is the largest trade agreement in the history of the United States. It is not talked about on corporate television. So thank you for discussing it.

Second of all and very importantly, you know, extensively, we have a two- party system, Democrats and Republicans, but historically, on trade agreements whether it`s NAFTA, CAFTA, permanent normal trade relations with China, TPP, you have both leaderships of the Democrats, Republicans coming together, strongly supported by corporate America to come up with trade agreements that have been devastating to the working class of this country.

Trade agreements have resulted in the laws of millions of decent paying jobs. What the TPP would do is essentially sanctify the right of corporations to make profits at the expense of workers rights, decent wages, environmental protection, and the ability of people to get affordable prescription drugs.

SCHULTZ: You know, senator, I`ve often thought that "Gosh. It`s disposable income that really runs our economy." What I`m starting to believe, it`s what kind of rate can you get? Who can pay the rate? And if they can pay the rate, that`s what we`re going to set it at (ph), doesn`t matter how many customers are out there. It just matters whether we got the right product and whether they`re paying the rate.

What kind of rate can you get? What`s out there? What`s the potential of getting the kind of rate you can get? So it`s almost as if the middle class -- that doesn`t matter if they have discretionary income. And I think when you look at the chart, you look at the market, the stock market, I am a stock market guy. I believe in all of the capitalistic things, but greed has now entered in at an unprecedented level and patriotism.

Economic patriotism has left the building as I see it.

Senator, this new chart.

SANDERS: Let me give you two.

SCHULTZ: Go ahead sir.

SANDERS: Let me just give you two examples, Ed. Number one, in Vietnam, part -- one of the country`s part of the TPP, the minimum wage there, Ed, is $0.28 an hour, $0.28 an hour.

So American workers could be forced to compete against people, productive people, hardworking people will make $0.28 an hour. Where do you think American companies are going to go?

SCHULTZ: Yeah, exactly.

SANDERS: Second point, in terms of prescription drugs, what the pharmaceutical industry, which by the way, charges us in America, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, what they want to do is to tell poor countries around the world that they can`t get low cost generic drugs. They have to pay top price for brand name drugs. And they`re going to impose restrictions on poor countries that they have to pay high prices for drugs. Just two out of many examples.

Third example, in America, many states and the federal government have buy American pipe legislation.

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

SANDERS: When we want, obviously, to create jobs in this country that can be overruled by the TPP, federal government itself will have to allow competition for Vietnam and other countries for products that they wish to -- products and services they wish to buy.

SCHULTZ: And senator, what`s your reaction to the outrageous video and story and party that was on Wall Street and apparently, it`s just part of the culture? I mean, these are the folks that were bailed out by the American taxpayer and prompt up to go consolidate in buying more banks.

SANDERS: I mean, Ed, these guys are living in a separate world. They are making unbelievable sums of money. They have contempt for the American people who, as you indicated, bailed them out when their greed and recklessness and illegal behavior drove this economy into a major recession.

They are only concerned about making as much money as they possibly can. And then what they do is they use some of that money to get involved in elections to help elect extreme Right Wing candidate. So they use that power and their money in the election process to give them more power and money.

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