A rejection of the Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal would go far beyond just causing U.S. exporters to miss out on lower tariffs, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said today. It would also weaken America and hurt the status of the U.S. as an international leader, he said in an address to the CATO Institute in Washington. “Rejecting TPP would undermine U.S. leadership, not only in the Asia-Pacific region, but around the world,” Froman said in a speech that warned about the consequences of becoming a more protectionist country. “Our allies couldn't help but question whether we had the will to make good on our commitments.”
To make his point, Froman passed along a comment to him from the prime minister of Singapore: “If you're not prepared to deal when it comes to cars, services and agriculture, can we depend on you when it comes to security and military arrangements?”