Hillary: ‘As of Today, I Am Not In Favor Of What I Have Learned About’ TPP

Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that “as of today, I am not in favor of what I have learned about” the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) n a clip of an interview with “PBS NewsHour” released on Wednesday.

Hillary stated, “I have been trying to learn as much as I can about the agreement, but I’m worried. I’m worried about currency manipulation not being part of the agreement. … I’m worried pharmaceutical companies may have gotten more benefits, and patients and consumers fewer.”

She added that while there are “a lot” of “unanswered” questions,  “What I know about it, as of today, I am not in favor of what I have learned about it.” Hillary further said, that while she doesn’t have all the details or the text of the agreement, “I don’t believe it’s going to meet the high bar I have set.”

Back in June, CNN’s Jake Tapper released a list of 45 times Hillary “approvingly invoked” TPP, most recently, on January 31, 2013 where she cited using “trade negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership to find common ground with a former adversary in Vietnam” as an example of “creative diplomacy.” Tapper’s article further cites two remarks from November 2012. On the 29th of that month, she listed TPP as an example of “America’s expanding economic leadership in the region.” On the 17th of the same month, she argued, “The so-called TPP will lower barriers, raise standards, and drive long-term growth across the region. It will cover 40 percent of the world’s total trade and establish strong protections for workers and the environment. Better jobs with higher wages and safer working conditions, including for women, migrant workers and others too often in the past excluded from the formal economy will help build Asia’s middle class and rebalance the global economy. … We welcome the interest of any nation willing to meet 21st century standards as embodied in the TPP, including China.” In the same speech, she also said, “our next step will be to transform these regional efforts — the TPP, the EU agreement, our bilateral trade deals — into a truly global vision.”

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