By Colleen McCain Nelson And William Mauldin
WASHINGTON--President Barack Obama
defended his push Friday to strike a major trade deal with 11
Pacific nations as necessary to boost the economy and help working
Americans, but acknowledged a tough battle ahead to win support
from many within his own party.
After long relying on Democrats to advance his agenda, Mr. Obama
must now depend largely on Republicans to pass a bill that would
clear the way for a trade pact with Japan, Canada, Vietnam and
other Pacific nations.
The proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, a major ambition
of the president's remaining time in office, pits him against many
of the same Democratic lawmakers, labor unions, environmentalists
and liberal activists who helped elect him.
Mr. Obama moved to assure critics on the left that the deal
would contain provisions protecting human rights and labor and
environmental standards. But he gave no ground on his pursuit of
the Pacific pact and the so-called fast-track legislation that
would ease its passage.
"The current situation is not working for us," he said in
extended remarks to reporters, arguing the U.S. already is at a
disadvantage in the global economy, and that companies seeking
low-cost labor have left the country.
Opposing the deal, he said, meant "ratification of the status
quo, where a lot of folks are selling here, but we're not selling
there."
The White House already has launched a quiet but sustained
lobbying effort aimed at persuading enough Democrats to join
Republicans in backing legislation that would allow Congress to
vote on trade pacts but not to amend the deals.
With debate now under way in Congress, Mr. Obama is gearing up
to make a more aggressive, personal pitch in the coming weeks. In
addition to reaching out to lawmakers, the president will make the
case directly to opponents in his own party through public events
around the country and through what a White House official
described as "targeted media engagements."
Mr. Obama's comments came a day after key congressional leaders
struck a deal on fast-track legislation and as Democrats continued
to voice serious reservations about signing off on the
trade-promotion authority that several past presidents have had.
Some of Mr. Obama's reliable allies, including Sen. Charles Schumer
(D., N.Y.), already have taken a stand against the president's
trade ambitions as currently proposed.
"I don't believe in these agreements anymore," Mr. Schumer said
this week.
Highlighting the challenge ahead, Mr. Obama won no overt support
Friday from Hillary Clinton, the leading Democrat aiming to succeed
him in the White House after 2016. In a statement, Her campaign
spokesman said the U.S. should be "willing to walk away" from any
deal that fails to protect U.S. workers, raise wages, create more
jobs at home and enhance national security. The statement gave no
verdict on the Pacific deal.
Mr. Obama was unbowed Friday by his party's opposition and by
suggestions that his position on trade would damage the party,
saying other trade deals have been passed during his presidency,
and "it didn't divide the Democratic Party."
He suggested that many Democrats oppose trade because "because
the unions on principle, regardless of what the provisions are, are
opposed to trade."
Labor unions and other liberal groups have said that the
proposed trade deal would hurt U.S. workers and could lead to
outsourcing and job losses.
Mr. Obama has promised to avoid the mistakes of past trade
agreements. On Friday, he said that once a deal is reached, he
would be able to show that it will be good for American businesses
and workers.
The administration's efforts to claw back support from some
unions and Democratic lawmakers "isn't going to work," said Rep.
Rosa DeLauro (D., Conn.), who is spearheading opposition to
fast-track legislation in the House. "It is a very formidable
united front on this issue that I believe will be maintained."
Fast track is also opposed by some tea-party and conservative
groups, including the American Family Association, which represents
the religious right. That sets up an unusual bloc of opposition,
forcing Mr. Obama to align with a large group of more moderate
Republicans in Congress and a smaller number of Democrats.
Unions are particularly upset that the White House is reaching
out to local union affiliates in areas where the administration
thinks it could bring Democratic members to support fast track.
"So far, I don't think they're getting any positive response on
that, and I suspect probably it's backfiring," said Thea Lee,
deputy chief of staff at the AFL-CIO, the largest U.S. labor
confederation.
Mr. Obama on Friday repeated a recent argument that the TPP
won't hurt workers because the pangs of globalization have mostly
run their course, and there will be labor and environmental
safeguards that prevent job losses blamed on the Nafta deal with
Mexico and Canada.
But many Democrats are worried most about U.S. workers competing
with low-wage competitors in Vietnam and Malaysia, and unions say
they are opposing fast track because they don't trust the
administration to enact really tough rules on labor in the TPP.
"The worst thing that the White House says is 'This is how we
fix Nafta, ' " said Larry Cohen, president of the Communications
Workers of America, a union. "There is no enforceability at all for
the language."