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

Interview

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SCHULTZ: Joining me tonight on our Rapid Response Panel Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut and also with us tonight Leo Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers.

Great to have both of you with us, you know, there are some in Congress who think that this President should have fast tracked because other Presidents have had it. For instance, Congressman Gerry Connolly says that it would be a terrible blow for Democrats to be the instrument of denying the President fast track authority.

Congresswoman, what`s your response to that?

REP. ROSA DELAURO, (D) CONNECTICUT: Well, first of all, this is not about
the -- what the Congress is about do or not, this is about what the effect
of fast track and what the effect of the Trans-Pacific Partnership will be
on jobs and wage, that`s the single biggest issue that face today.

The empirical data shows that in higher trade agreements whether it was
NAFTA or Korea. Two years ago, Korea has now resulted in the loss of about
60,000 U.S. jobs. This is about jobs. I have been consistent in my years
in the Congress. I have never voted to provide fast track authority to a
President, Democrat or Republican because I have an obligation, I have a
responsibility. The Constitution tells me that I need to review...

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

DELAURO: ... these trade agreements and I need to be able to debate them
and I need to be able to amend them. That is what`s at stake.

SCHULTZ: So Congresswoman, do you think that fast track is bad no matter -
- who the President is, that this really undercuts the Congresses` ability
to represent American workers?

DELAURO: That`s precisely right, there`s no public scrutiny. There is
limited Congressional debate and there is no opportunity to amend. Like
our colleague said years ago and the public said years ago, read the bill.
That`s precisely...

SCHULTZ: All right.

DELAURO: ... what we`re trying to do.

SCHULTZ: Mr. Gerard, what`s your union`s reaction to President Obama`s
push for TPP at the State of the Union?

LEO GERARD, PRES., UNITED STEELWORKERS: Well, two things Ed. We`re
obviously opposed to the TPP. Let me just say this, we`ve been willing to
work with the administration. We`ve been willing to work with Ambassador
Froman to see if there was a possibility that we can end up with a trade
deal that in fact created jobs in America.

We`re still prepared to do that but we don`t see that coming. And let me
build on what Congresswoman DeLauro said, and these are hard numbers.

Korea, the last October we had a monthly trade deficit with Korea of $3
billion, extrapolate that. Exports in the U.S. are -- from U.S. decree are
down five percent. Since we had the normalized trade relations with China
over those 12 years, we`ve not got close to eight trillion with a T,
trillion, and trillion is a thousand million trade deficit with China over
those 12 years.

So, the history of what trade deals have done has been destroying the
industrial economy of America. When you sit down with the employer and
they tell our member, well look I got to met the China price so it`s also
had the ability to hold down wages.

If the President wants to have a trade deal he has to have a trade deal
that is open, that`s transparent and that when we look at it and analyze it
we say yes, this trade deal will create net jobs for America. Not a trade
deal that says, imports are up by 28 percent, but then -- or our exports
were up by 28 percent but then imports at the U.S. were up 40, 56...
Advertise

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

GERARD: ... to 80 percent. Ed, let me make one more quick point and I
don`t want to take all the time. I am here because we`re filling another
trade case on paper. We just did one on tires.

Steel imports into this country are up 35 percent one year over last year
and we had a trade deal that we won against Korea. The Korean government
just told that Koreans company, we`ll eat that, you just keep flooding the
market.

So imports of pipe into Korea after we won the trade case are up again.
The system is broken, it doesn`t working and it needs to be rebuilt.

SCHULTZ: Well, the President said on the State of the Union that we should
be the ones writing the rules. And I thought that was rather convoluted
the way things have unfolded after the last trade agreements Mr. Gerard.

GERARD: Ed, look at the rules are, and let me again, I don`t want to...

SCHULTZ: Take as much time as you got to get out. Go ahead.

GERARD: We filed a trade case. We win the trade case only if we can prove
that the companies have lost market share. They lost profitability and
we`ve lost jobs.

The reason we`re aback with the tire case is after the expiry of the duty on the tire cases was over, China dumped 50.7 million tires into the market...

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

GERARD: ... at five tires per car that`s over 10 million cars.
Advertise

SCHULTZ: So...

GERARD: What the hell is going on?

SCHULTZ: Congresswoman, how are you going to stop this?

DELAURO: We`re going defeat fast track in the House of Representatives.
We will have the votes to be able to do that.

SCHULTZ: You got Republicans to that. You got enough...

DELAURO: I believe the Republicans are in it for their other own interest.
They represent the people the way that I do and that they`re -- they don`t
have jobs. Their wages have been depressed and it is because of trade
deals. They`re representing their constituents in the same way that I am.
We have President...

SCHULTZ: OK.

DELAURO: ... who (ph) defeat it in 97, 171 Democrats, 71 Republicans,
we`re going to do it again.

GERARD: And we denied to President Clinton.

SCHULTZ: You denied to Clintondelaur but...

DELAURO: Yes.

SCHULTZ: ... this President is pretty determined to get fast track and
his...

DELAURO: And we`re pretty determined to not have fast track. So...

SCHULTZ: Well, who is counseling the President that this is the right
thing to do Mr. Gerard?

GERARD: Well I think you got the normal game from old script. You got a
bunch of people who are free traders. And Wall Street makes it on both
ends of the deal. You got multinational corporations...

SCHULTZ: OK.

GERARD: ... that like to play one against other. And it certainly isn`t
workers, there`s no workers. Farmers are pushing for it and their
corporate farmers are really pushing for it.

SCHULTZ: All right, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro and also Leo Gerard, good to have both of you with us tonight on this. It`s a hot issue in the
Congress no doubt.

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