Countries began signing on to the U.S.-led trade deal the Trans-Pacific Partnership, this month. The Obama administration has made the 12-nation deal one of its key achievements while in office. He has made various speeches and appearances to gather support for the deal that has both strong support and opposition.
To better understand the deal and what it means for the world, correspondent Tom Murphy spoke with Kimberly Ann Elliott a Senior fellow specializing in trade policy at the Center for Global Development. She starts by explaining just what the deal is and who is involved. At its core, the TPP sets out trade rules among signatory countries. It comes as talks to reform rules set by the World Trade Organization have been stalled.
The countries involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade talks.
Elliott helps cut through the arguments for and against the deal to help understand what it can and cannot achieve. As is always the case, there are some over-stated claims from proponents and opponents alike, but there is good reason to have some concerns about the TPP when it comes to development. Low-income countries participating, like Vietnam, benefit slightly and at the potential expense of other countries.
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of the TPP, Tom discusses some of this week’s news highlights with KPLU’s Gabe Spitzer. They begin with the new estimate that 200 million women and girls are affected by female genital mutilation. Reporter Lisa Nikolau’s story brings forward the importance of the estimate relative to years past.
Another story by Nikolau reports on the fact that the Peace Corps officially pulled out of El Salvador. After months of trying to keep volunteers safe, the U.S. decided that violence was too high for its members to remain. Finally, Tom brings up two of his stories related to climate change. One is about a major court setback experienced by the Obama administration and another is about the consensus among climate economists that climate change is a problem that needs solutions now.
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