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A bipartisan group of lawmakers is calling on Biden administration trade representative Katherine Tai to end what they described as “secret negotiations” with foreign trading partners.
In a letter led Wednesday by Sen. Mike Crapo, Republican of Idaho, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and signed by 18 of his Senate colleagues, the group accused Tai and the Biden administration of circumventing Congress and for failing to take into account adequate contributions from business leaders. in their desire to “rush” changes in two of the country’s main areas free trade agreements with Mexico, Canada and Colombia.
The changes would serve to alter the interpretation of investor protection provisions for U.S. companies embedded in the government’s trade agreements with those countries.
“Unfortunately, USTR is seeking to make substantial changes to trade agreements on an abbreviated schedule, out of public view and without meaningful consultation with Congress,” the senators’ letter states. “Extensive consultations with Congress and stakeholders are essential to ensure that affected businesses and their workers understand what is being proposed and how it may impact operations at home and abroad.” »
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U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai speaks during a joint news conference with her Mexican counterparts at the Dean Acheson Auditorium at the State Department’s Harry S. Truman Building, September 29, 2023, in Washington, D.C. DC. (Getty Images/Getty Images)
The ongoing negotiations are related to interpretations of the investor protection provisions contained in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and the United States-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement.
Currently, U.S. companies operating internationally can use third-party courts to arbitrate disputes over business practices with other countries. Current investor protections that allow third-party mediation in these trade deals have resulted in significant damages claims against governments, according to Reuters.
A group of nearly 40 Democrats from Chamber of Deputies last month said in a different letter, led by Rep. Lloyd Doggett, Democrat of Texas, that they were happy to hear reports about potential updates to the investor protection sections, arguing that the process of Using a third-party mediator serves to give corporations too much power to interfere with legitimate government actions.
The letter calls the action a “wise decision,” arguing that investor protection mechanisms allow “foreign companies” to use international courts as weapons to circumvent a country’s domestic policies and prioritize commercial interests. at the expense of workers, consumers, small businesses and the interests of these countries. environment.
U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas (Getty Images/Getty Images)
“We strongly encourage you to act urgently to eliminate or significantly reduce the ability of multinational corporations to use investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) tribunals as a tool to attack the legitimate actions of governments and extract unlimited sums of money to country taxpayers due to laws, actions, or court decisions of sovereign nations that the companies believe conflict with their special ISDS rights and privileges,” the letter states.
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In a opinion article For the Washington Times, Republican Senators Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Katie Britt of Alabama and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama cited the example of an American construction company, Vulcan Materials, which has been building for decades infrastructure to source limestone in the Yucatán. But she recently faced a campaign by Mexican politicians to seize her assets. The campaign came after the country’s government declared in September that the land Vulcan used to source limestone was part of a protected nature reserve owned by Mexico.
Image of a Vulcan Materials Company limestone quarry in Tuscumbia, Alabama. (Getty Images/Getty Images)
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Fox News Digital reached out to Tai’s office for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
