By Susan Kohn Ross

Originally published by the Journal of Commerce in October 2015

With the news the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations have been successfully concluded, the obvious question is what is next? The Republican leadership in the House of Representatives is in chaos. As we go to press, the presumptive new Speaker has withdrawn, the caucus is coming apart, the Democrats are smiling, but the country is suffering. Renewal of the ExIm Bank is subject to a parliamentary ploy where the one thing Congress is supposed to do finally happened – a bipartisan group of Republicans and Democrats reached across the aisle seeking to govern the country. Whether their parliamentary move does the trick remains to be seen. Will the House pass ExIm renewal? Continue reading “Trans-Pacific Partnership Negotiations Concluded – Now What?”

By Susan Kohn Ross

Originally published by the Journal of Commerce in November 2015

As every international trader worth his/her salt knows, the text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership was released on November 5th. Given word from the Executive Branch is the agreement is still being “scrubbed”, it is reasonable to conclude the text is not yet final, but is being released, as some of our Canadian colleagues commented about regarding newly elected Prime Minister Trudeau and his Labor Party, to allow the nay-sayers to get their vitriol out now, so that by the time the vote comes, calmer heads will prevail. Whether that is a prudent approach remains to be seen. Continue reading “Trans-Pacific Partnership: Bane or Boon?”