64% of the American People Reject the 2-Party System (Image by Liberals United) Details DMCA | The linked Politico article unmasks the almost 8 month bipartisan campaign of peer pressure to enact President Obama's long-stalled Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority.
The White House and congressional Republicans divvied up duties. Obama was responsible for wrangling "yes" votes from 30 House Democrats, while Ryan took the lead in whipping Republicans. Obama's Cabinet was deployed in force. Secretary of State John Kerry told Democrats that the country needed the deal to compete in the global economy. Labor Secretary Tom Perez sought to convince wary Democrats that it wouldn't weaken labor protections. Others, including Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, White House economic adviser Jeffrey Zients, Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and White House chief of staff Denis McDonough, regularly lobbied Democrats. |