Michael Payne

RINF Alternative News

It’s time President Obama clarifies the massive conflict that exists with his initiative dealing with the inequality of wealth and income in this country versus his strong support of the TPP, the Transpacific Partnership Agreement. Someone needs to tell him that he can’t be fighting against inequality while, at the same time promoting a trade agreement that will create far more inequality.

Americans have become increasingly aware of the many highly questionable provisions of the TPP and how it will adversely impact this country and its workers; they are very suspicious of this president’s real motives. One gets the feeling this campaign to rally the people against inequality by increasing the minimum wage is merely a smoke screen to divert attention from his primary objective; to fast track the TPP through Congress and make it the law of the land.

In fact, he is saying little about the provisions of the TPP and is keeping both the Congress and the American people in the dark about this secretive agreement that according to reports has involved the participation of over 600 corporate executives over the last several years but no one in Congress.

President Obama, in his State of the Union address, did speak about the plight of the American worker and he addressed both the need to increase the minimum wage and proceed with the approval of the TPP. Regarding the minimum wage he stated, “Tonight, let’s declare that, in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full time should have to live in poverty — and raise the federal minimum wage to $9 an hour.” Not exactly a rousing call for action on this issue.

Later on he made the case for the TPP when he said, “Now, even as we protect our people, we should remember that today’s world presents not just dangers, not just threats. It presents opportunities. To boost American exports, support American jobs, and level the playing field in the growing markets of Asia, we intend to complete negotiations on a Trans-Pacific Partnership.”

These two initiatives are diametrically opposed, their goals, based on the views of many observers are incompatible. Haven’t we been down this road before when, twenty years ago we had the Clinton/Gore administration beating the drums for the approval of NAFTA, that trade agreement initiated in 1994 between the U.S., Canada and Mexico? You know, the one that was supposed to benefit this country and its workers in so many ways but totally backfired. It was sold as a job creator but then turned into a job destroyer. Yes we most certainly have; it’s dÃ©ja vu all over again.

The Chicago Tribune editorial board, a well-known mouthpiece of the GOP and Corporate America stated, “Free trade agreements eliminate tariffs, red tape, and other barriers to doing business across borders. They make the common marketplace bigger and more efficient, which means more moneymaking opportunities. Over time sales go up, prices go down and the pace of economic activity increases.” Well, that’s no more than a page out of the corporate manifesto.

What the Tribune failed to mention is that nations that employ slave labor and the masters of Corporatism will both profit immensely from this TPP while jobs of Americans will continue to disappear and more and more Americans will be added to the rolls of the unemployed. This is the same old claptrap that came with NAFTA, and all the parties to this covert plan are clearly trying, once again, to pull the wool over the eyes of the American people.

We might recall the passionate words of Senator Ted Kennedy in 2007 when he took to the Senate floor and berated the Republicans for filibustering legislation designed to increase the minimum wage. Whether one is an admirer of Kennedy or not, that’s beside the point; it’s his words that count in this situation in which he said:

“What is the price, we ask the other side? What is the price that you want from these working men and women? What cost? How much more do they have to give to the private sector and to business? How many billion dollars more, are you asking, are you requiring? “When does the greed stop?” The answer is that the greed never stops.

Question for President Obama; aren’t this nation’s current massive trade deficits high enough? And you want to make them even higher? And will this be one of the crowning points of your presidency, the shafting of the already bloodied and battered American worker?

What then should this president do if he really wants to address inequality in America? Instead of supporting the TPP he should create an action group, not just another useless government study group, but one committed to real action enlisting the talents of the best and brightest minds involved with American commerce; from the corporate world, unions, economists and the government; those with the ability to think out of the box rather than hanging onto the status quo.

The objective would be: to determine exactly what it will take for this nation to restore its manufacturing sector and its workforce. Everything should be on the table for potential change: current corporate tax rates, rules and regulations governing manufacturing, tax evasion stemming from the use of overseas tax havens and taking advantage of other tax loopholes, pay scales for American workers, and union and corporate relationships. He has talked about these things but he can’t seem to put these words in action through strong leadership.

Without a doubt this would be a very ambitious, quite difficult exercise, but it’s one that is of critical importance to America. This country can no longer continue to live with the massive gulf that exists between corporations and the American workforce. The current system of conducting business in this country is obsolete, outdated, and one that is impeding the growth of our economy.

Just think about that, an action group that would address and attack what might be considered America’s most egregious problem, its dying manufacturing sector. That would be great, truly revolutionary. Yes, it most certainly would be but there’s just one problem; it simply isn’t going to happen; not with this president, not with this Congress and not as long as Corporate America controls the nation’s agenda. Not in the America of today.

But even if that door to creative and innovative ways to save this nation’s dying manufacturing sector is currently shut, there are other ways to deal with this specific issue. We are seeing a rapidly growing movement underway in this country, led by numerous organizations that are determined to stop this ill-conceived TPP trade agreement in its tracks. At least 550 public interest organizations are working hard to mobilize the people against it, largely through the use of petitions; and the movement is picking up momentum.

Here’s just one of the many websites where you can sign a petition designed to stop the TPP. This is a great example of people power at work. And here’s another link to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, where you can do the same; and when you sign any petition please forward the link to members of your family and friends so they also can consider doing the same.

Talk about getting a last chance to do something important, this is a case where we can certainly say that this may be our last chance to save what’s left of this country’s dying manufacturing sector; it may be the last chance to stop the erosion of the middle class. We have to view the specter of the TPP looming on America’s horizon as a distinct threat to this nation and we have to do all we can to derail the entire process.

If this president continues to align himself with the TPP and his corporate partners then here’s the question that should be posed to him: “Mr. President, what is the price that you want these working men and women to pay? What is the cost that they must bear? How much more do they have to give to the private sector and to business? And, Mr. President, when does the greed stop?

Michael Payne is an independent progressive activist. His writings deal with social, economic, political and foreign policy issues; and especially with the great dangers involved with the proliferation of perpetual war, the associated defense industry, and the massive control that Corporate America holds over this government and our election process; all which are leading this nation down the road to eventual financial ruin if the conditions are not reversed. He is a graduate of Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois and a U.S. Army veteran.