Noe Reyes Navarrete helps to plow the family field outside Teticic, Mexico. (Matthew Lester/MCC)
On June 24 Rep. Mike Michaud (D-ME) along with 105 original co-sponsors reintroduced the Trade Reform, Accountability, Development and Employment (TRADE) Act (H.R. 3012). The TRADE Act was first introduced last year as a way to offer an alternative to current U.S. trade policy.
“This is an exciting day for trade policy,” said Michaud. “Last year, we had 74 cosponsors of the TRADE Act and this year we have 106. Members are sick and tired of being against trade agreements and they want to stand for something. I have no doubt the number of cosponsors have increased because the American people are demanding a new course on trade. The TRADE Act is a tremendous step forward in the debate and could help shape the future of our trade policies.”
The TRADE Act offers a way forward to reform U.S. trade policy, which is often guided by narrow national self-interest, which translates into seeking the interests of U.S.-based capital, corporations and agribusinesses. This has had a detrimental impact on poor communities all over the world. Millions of family farmers have lost their livelihoods, their lands and have been forced to migrate. Trade policies must work to advance the common good rather than the interests of a few.
Click here for more information on the TRADE Act (H.R. 3012).
