Congress cleared the second part of the trade package Thursday after House Democrats reversed themselves and voted for new assistance for workers displaced by free trade agreements, cementing fast-track negotiating powers President Obama will use to finalize a major Pacific Rim deal.
The 286-138 vote is a momentous victory for Mr. Obama and for the GOP congressional leaders who linked arms with him, overcoming years of bad blood between the two sides. The vote also marked the return of Rep. Paul Ryan, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and the GOP’s point man on trade, to the pinnacle of Washington politics.
Mr. Ryan had implored colleagues to buy into free trade, arguing the U.S. position as the global economy’s linchpin was at stake.
“It will empower Congress in trade negotiations. It will help us get the best possible trade agreements for American workers. And it will tell the world that the United States is still willing and able to lead,” the Wisconsin Republican and former GOP vice presidential nominee said.
Democratic leaders had conceded their defeat earlier this week, but vowed Thursday to reignite the fight later this year when Mr. Obama is expected to submit the Pacific Rim trade deal, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, for an up-or-down vote in both the House and Senate.
“The American people will want to be engaged in that debate,” said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, the California Democrat who just two weeks ago doomed the trade package by voting against the worker assistance.
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But on Thursday, after GOP leaders outmaneuvered her and coupled the worker assistance to another popular package of trade preferences for African nations and Haiti, Mrs. Pelosi led Democrats in their reversal.
The trade deal comes on the same day that the Supreme Court issued a decision upholding the core of Mr. Obama’s signature health law, in what amounted to a legacy-cementing two-fer.
It hasn’t come, however, without serious damage to his standing among liberal pressure groups, who have accused him of selling out their principles by pushing for free trade.
Some of the groups have already said they’ll push to kill whatever trade deals the president signs using the fast-track powers he now has.
“Now the final phase of the battle begins,” said Jim Dean, head of Democracy for America. “Once the final negotiations are complete, Congress will have 90 days to review and vote on the TPP. They can’t amend it and they can’t filibuster it, so we’re just going to have to kill it.”
The trade votes also split Republicans, though the divisions weren’t as large as on the Democratic side.
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Some conservatives had opposed the convoluted process GOP leaders used to try to get the legislation through the chamber earlier this month, and voted against the rules for debate. That earned them rebukes from House Speaker John A. Boehner, whose lieutenants tried to punish the renegades.
But on Thursday the GOP leaders relented, allowing two of the objectors to keep their posts.
Thursday’s vote on the workers’ package, known as Trade Adjustment Assistance or TAA, saw Republicans split about evenly, while Democrats were overwhelmingly in favor.
Last week, it was the GOP who provided the votes to pass fast-track powers, known as Trade Promotion Authority or TPA.
Mr. Obama had demanded both TAA and TPA be cleared, which forced Congress to go through contortions to have both of them reach his desk.
Still to come is a final bill that stiffens enforcement of existing trade agreements. That legislation also has language preventing Mr. Obama from trying to negotiate immigration or global warming deals as side-agreements in new free trade deals.
The House and Senate will hold a conference committee to hammer out differences between the two sides on that legislation.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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