Sessions: Obama Trade Deals Set Up Union With Power Over US Laws

Cathy Burke

Urgent warnings are being sounded about passage of the Trade Promotion Authority, with two GOP lawmakers claiming it'll create a monster economic union — and a new analysis determining it'll greatly expand the president's executive authority on immigration.

Breitbart News reports that a 10-page chapter in a section of Trade in Services Act documents unilaterally alters current U.S. immigration law.

"The existence of these 10 pages on immigration in the Trade and Services Agreement make it absolutely clear in my mind that the administration is negotiating immigration — and for them to say they are not — they have a lot of explaining to do based on the actual text in this agreement," Rosemary Jenks, the director of government relations at NumbersUSA, told Breitbart following her review of the documents.

President Barack Obama is seeking "fast-track" powers that would help wrap up negotiations on a 12-nation Pacific Rim trade deal central to projecting American influence in Asia. The Senate approved the powers, but opposition is deeper in the House.

Obama needs trade promotion authority (TPA) to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement this year, an economic alliance that would encompass 40 percent of the world's economies in countries ranging from Japan to Chile.

The House could vote as early as Friday on fast-track, Breitbart reports.

Jenks tells Breitbart the documents counter statements of the U.S. trade representative.

"He has told members of Congress very specifically the U.S. is not negotiating immigration — or at least is not negotiating any immigration provisions that would require us to change our laws," Jenks said. "So, unless major changes are made to the Trade and Services Agreement — that is not true."            

Jenks further warned:

"I think this whole thing makes it very clear that this administration is negotiating immigration — intends to make immigration changes if they can get away with it, and I think it’s that much more critical that Congress ensure that the administration does not have the authority to negotiate immigration."

Meanwhile, GOP Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama and Rep. Duncan Hunter of California went on Sean Hannity's radio show on Wednesday to push against passage of TPA, Breitbart reports.

Sessions argued TPA wasn't just a framework for a process for the president to use in negotiating trade agreements, but instead creates an economic union with wide-ranging powers.

"I’ve been there three times and I can tell you it is far more than a trade agreement,” he said. “It is a creating of an economic union.

"The congressional resource said it is a wide-ranging political and economic partnership that is created, where the Sultan of Brunei gets one vote. The president of the United States gets one vote. Twelve countries — they have the ability to add other treaties and pass them.

"They have the ability to deal with climate issues, wage issues and environmental issues. There’s just no doubt about that."

Sessions also said Americans, if they were made aware of the economic union — which he likened to the European Union — would shoot the idea down.

"I think it’s because if the trade commission — if the international commission, the Pacific union that is being created here — were made public, it wouldn’t go anywhere," he said.
"I just don’t think it has any chance — look, England found out after they joined the EU they can’t fox hunt anymore."