Another Silver Lining

The Obama administration has given up on the idea of passing the TPP during the lame duck session of Congress.

This is unsurprising. Trump was uncharacteristically precise on his position on the trade deal during the campaign, and as such, it is highly unlikely that Obama would get the necessary support from Congressional Republicans that he would need to pass the trade agreement:

White House officials conceded on Friday that the president’s hard-fought-for Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal would not pass Congress, as lawmakers there prepared for the anti-global trade policies of President-elect Donald Trump.

Earlier this week, congressional leaders in both parties said they would not bring the trade deal forward during a lame-duck session of Congress, before the formal transition of power on 20 January.

The Democratic senator Chuck Schumer, who will be minority leader in the next Congress, told union leaders the trade deal would not pass. Senator Mitch McConnell, the chamber’s Republican majority leader, told reporters “no” when asked if Congress would consider the TPP.

So, Barack Obama loses one items that he hoped would cement his legacy as President, and the rest of us win.

My heart bleeds borscht for you, Mr. President.