Trade In Elections
2016 Election:
A look at the 2016 election reveals a bipartisan race to align campaign positions with the American public’s opposition to the proposed U.S. corporate-rigged trade pacts like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Over the course of the election season, both presidential candidates announced their opposition to the TPP, and many in Congress vowed to fight against the trade pact, fueling bipartisan expectations for trade reform.
The next president will need to develop a new approach to trade and globalization that fights for low- and middle-income families while enhancing labor and environmental standards around the world. A new report by Jared Bernstein and Lori Wallach, The New Rules of the Road: A Progressive Approach to Globalization provides an outline of what a new approach should look like.
Featured Resources:
- TPP: How Obama Traded Away His Legacy
- The Democrats’ ‘Working-Class Problem’
- 2016 Poll Public anger about corporate power dominant factor in views on trade & TPP
- Find out more on the blog: Read the latest on trade and elections on Eyes on Trade
Public Citizen Factsheets, Memos & Reports
- The Trade Debate: Election Outcomes Affected, Public Views Increasingly Negative, Imminent Lame-Duck Fight Over TPP Is First Salvo in Election 2018 (November 7, 2016)
- U.S. Polling Shows Strong Opposition to Fast Tracking More of the Same U.S. Trade Deals from Independents, Republicans and Democrats Alike (June 9, 2015)
- New Polls Reveal that U.S. Public Supports Trade in General, while Opposing Current “Trade” Policy Agenda (March 31, 2014)
- Election 2012: U.S. Polling Shows NAFTA-style Trade Deals Becoming Even More Unpopular (January 24, 2013)
- Selected Campaign Statements by President Barack Obama on U.S. Trade and Globalization Policy (January 2009)
Public Citizen Press Releases & Statements
- Reporters’ Memo: What the 2014 Election Results Mean for Trade Policy (November 5, 2014)
- Obama, Romney and Congressional Candidates Nationwide Used Trade-Themed Ads to Appeal to U.S. Majority Opposing Trade Status Quo (November 7, 2012)
Learn More about Trade in Elections
Disclosure: Global Trade Watch has no preference among the candidates.