Democrat: ‘I do not trust this president on trade’

A House Democrat said Tuesday that he doesn’t trust President Obama on trade amid a scramble in the Senate to pass fast-track legislation before the Memorial Day recess.

“The fact is I do not trust the president on trade, not this president, not the last few presidents,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler said on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal.

{mosads}Nadler was one of 15 members of the New York Democratic delegation to sign a letter in April opposing the fast-track bill that would give the White House the power to negotiate trade deals and Congress an up-or-down vote without the chance to offer amendments.

“The trade process, the U.S. trade office is dominated by multinational corporations, and the results have been disastrous for the middle class, for working people,” Nadler said.

“I do not have confidence in this U.S. trade office, and I do not have confidence in the secret process and I don’t want to see power that was enjoyed by previous presidents that they shouldn’t have enjoyed, extended or granted again,” he said.

“We should have a much more open process.”

The April letter said that the lawmakers couldn’t support the legislation because it would “prevent Congress and the public from playing a meaningful role in upcoming trade agreements, including the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).”