You may be wondering what I think of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. All the cool kids are talking about it these days. Unfortunately, I don’t really have a position because I haven’t studied it enough.
But perhaps that will change soon. You may not have noticed, but yesterday was a miniature milestone for me. My post about Paul Ryan and Obamacare was the first time in months that I wrote a fairly analytical piece based on actual research. It was hardly an academic white paper or anything, but it’s the kind of post I haven’t really trusted myself to write ever since chemo brain took over my life. However, this week seems to have been a bit of a turning point. I still expect ups and downs, but I feel a bit better and sharper and able to write more. My concentration is a little more acute and I have a bit more energy. Progress! (I hope.)
Anyway, that’s a long way of saying that until now I just haven’t been up to the task of seriously evaluating the TPP. So I’ll say just this much: I am in favor of fast-track promotion. If it were up to me, I’d make it permanent, since it’s obvious that no treaty can ever be negotiated without it. But am I in favor of actually passing TPP? I’m not sure.
Bottom line: yes to an up-or-down vote, because that’s just common sense. But I’m unsure about how I’d like to see that vote go. Maybe I’ll dig into it a bit over the weekend.