Surprising TPP Origins of the USMCA
Soon after being elected in 2016, President-elect Donald Trump announced that withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) would be one of a number of executive orders he would make on “day one” of his presidency. He went on to call the TPP a “potential disaster for our country,” and he often used even harsher language toward the TPP.
Although many pundits pointed out that the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) appeared to have a great deal in common with the TPP agreement, it was not until 2019 that a pair of researchers from the University of Ottawa reported that more than half, 57 percent to be exact, of the USMCA text is identical to the TPP text.
Supranational Free Trade Commission
A key example of identical text copied from the TPP in the USMCA is the USMCA’s Chapter 30 on “Administrative and Institutional Provisions.” With the exception of a few minor tweaks, USMCA’s Chapter 30 reads almost word-for-word with the TPP’s Chapter 27, also entitled “Administrative and Institutional Provisions.” Both chapters establish the administrative or executive governing body for each of the agreements once they go into effect. Chapter 27 of the TPP establishes the governing “TPP Commission,” likewise Chapter 30 of the USMCA establishes its governing “Free Trade Commission.” Both commissions are empowered with identical supranational powers.
Giving these powers to the Free Trade Commission makes the USMCA a “living agreement,” much like the TPP, thus allowing the Free Trade Commission to change the agreement without the consent of the U.S. Congress. In fact, the agreement completely undermines Congress’ Constitutional Article I, Section 8 power to regulate trade with foreign nations, such as Mexico and Canada.
Preserve Our Rights: Stop the USMCA
If America wishes to remain governed by Americans and to reject the ideology of globalism, then it must also reject the ideologies of regionalism and supranationalism by getting out of the USMCA. The primary issue is not the economic impact of the USMCA, good or bad, but its destructive impact on U.S. sovereignty. The United States can weather the storms of a bad economy or recession, but it cannot survive the loss of its sovereignty.
The continuity of American sovereignty, and with it the safeguarding of our God-given rights by the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, hinges on what we do with regard to the USMCA. Those who embrace the doctrine of patriotism should contact the president, their U.S. representative, and U.S. senators to support getting the U.S. out of the USMCA. We must uphold our rights and freedoms by getting out of this steppingstone to an EU-style North American Union.