Democrats Complain USTR Is Not Fulfilling Obligations to Consult With Congress
The ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee and Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., say they are not satisfied with the U.S. trade representative's response to their complaints last summer on inadequate consultation (see 1708040031). In their new letter, sent March 28, Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., and Dingell say that USTR Robert Lighthizer "failed to respond to the specific issues that we raised." The Democrats did not share the letter they were reacting to.
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The original letter, signed by 50 Democrats in Congress, said the USTR should share negotiating text, both with Congress and the public. Lighthizer has repeatedly declined to go into details publicly, saying that it would damage sensitive negotiations. Now, they say, USTR has improved communication somewhat, but they are disappointed with how secretive the U.S-Korea Free Trade Agreement renegotiation has been. KORUS is not subject to trade promotion authority, because the administration says the changes being made are minor enough they do not need another congressional approval. The Democrats also complained that USTR has not produced "reports called for by the President regarding causes of significant trade deficits, Buy American policies, and violations or abuses of WTO rules and trade agreements." The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative did not respond to a request for comment by International Trade Today's deadline.