Is TTIP trade deal secret fascist US / EU corporate merger?

[TonyGosling]

Thanks Outsider for bringing this TTIP to our attention
And Mr Monbiot

[Frazzel]

https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/stop-the-british-government-joi ning-the-transatlantic-trade-and-investment-partnership

Please sign the petition to stop the TTIP.
The TTIP, if signed will mean,
no more labelling of GM foods
total privatisation of NHS, police and other public bodies
corporations can sue a government for restricting business, if health and safety legislation or other legislation, is seen as a hinderance.
Help stop this evil coporate take over.
TTIP has nothng to do with trade, but everything to do with a coporatocracy and an end to democracy.
_________________

[Moon-in-Taurus]

Can't get petition link to work. Any chance of a new link?

[TonyGosling]

sorted

a blast from the past

Edward Snowden and NSA: Worrying Times for Bilderberg Trade Lobbyists
By Charlie Skelton
July 2, 2013 14:17 GMT
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/nsa-snooping-scandal-bilderberg-conspiracy-tt ip-485638

The first round of talks in the giant Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership deal are due to begin next week but the latest NSA spying claims have thrown negotiations into doubt.

European Union officials have expressed outrage at the NSA for bugging embassies of a US allies including France, Japan and Turkey.

"We can't negotiate a large transatlantic market if there is any doubt that our partners are bugging the offices of European negotiators," warned EU commissioner Viviane Reding.

French president Francois Hollande was even more forthright. "There can be no negotiations or transactions in all areas until we have obtained these guarantees, for France but also for all of the EU, for all partners of the United States," he said.

Last month, when the TTIP was launched, David Cameron branded it "the biggest bilateral trade deal in history." But do the NSA bugging allegations mean the deal is history before it's even begun?

These are worrying times for the people who built the agreement, and those who spent time and effort lobbying for it.

Who Will Keep the Show on the Road?

Editor-in-Chief of the Economist and BritishAmerican Business lobbyist, John Micklethwait, arriving at Bilderberg 2013 (Photo: oneiroscope.com)
Editor-in-chief of the Economist and BritishAmerican Business lobbyist, John Micklethwait, arriving at Bilderberg 2013 (oneiroscope.com)
There are some pretty powerful interests who'll be trying to keep the TTIP show on the road.

Reding met some of them in June when she attended the Bilderberg conference at the Grove Hotel in Watford.

The three-day private policy summit was packed with pro-TTIP lobbyists, alongside many of the political architects of the deal, including Cameron, Conservative minister Kenneth Clarke (described as "a key negotiator in the [TTIP] trade deal") and president of the EU Commission José Manuel Barroso.

Downing Street described Cameron's official visit to the conference as "an opportunity to discuss economic issues with senior ministers, business people and academics".

Bilderberg's line-up of "business people" was as impressive as ever, with dozens of top corporate CEOs, billionaire venture capitalists, and high-level banking and finance lobbyists.

The list of delegates included senior members of the international advisory board of the lobby group BritishAmerican Business (BAB), such chairmen of Goldman Sachs International, Shell, HSBC and even editor-in-chief of the Economist John Micklethwait.

Lobbyists don't come any more heavyweight than that lot.

BAB describes itself as "the leading transatlantic business organisation, committed to promoting an open and competitive transatlantic business environment for our member companies to build their international business".

Working Hard - But How?

A security fence is fixed outside the Grove Hotel, which is hosting the Bilderburg meetings in Watford, near London June 6, 2013. Bilderberg is an annual conference attended by politicians, industry leaders, royalty and media designed to foster dialogue between Europe and North America, however it's closed-door and off-the-record policy is not appreciated by transparency campaigners. (Photo: REUTERS)
The Grove Hotel, Watford, home to the Bilderberg conference (Reuters)
Well, for one thing, BAB "actively engages with government to ensure that our members' interests are taken into account during policy development and implementation".

Top of the 2013 Bilderberg conference agenda was the question: "Can the US and Europe grow faster and create jobs?"

The answer, presumably, was TTIP - an agreement which, according to the White House, will aim to boost economic growth in the US and the EU and add to the more than 13 million American and EU jobs already supported by transatlantic trade and investment.

So here, at the same private conference, we've got the politicians who are putting together the TTIP deal (Cameron, Osborne, Barroso, Clarke) discussing it in private - and off the record - with a bunch of powerful people who are actively lobbying for it.

The Real Issue

A policeman talks to a protester in the grounds of the Grove Hotel, which is hosting the Bilderburg meetings in Watford, near London June 6, 2013. Bilderberg is an annual conference attended by politicians, industry leaders, royalty and media designed to foster dialogue between Europe and North America, however it's closed-door and off-the-record policy is not appreciated by transparency campaigners. (Photo: REUTERS)
A policeman talks to a protester in the grounds of the Grove Hotel which hosted the Bilderberg conference
The issue here is not whether the TTIP will provide a boost to growth and jobs. It's about unregulated corporate lobbying and its role in the formation of "the biggest bilateral trade deal in history".

Should we be worried that Clarke and Cameron and the other finance ministers were being lobbied with zero press or public oversight?

According to Clarke, there's no cause for concern.

On the Monday after Bilderberg, Clarke was called to face questions about the conference at parliament and he assured his fellow MPs that "no one alters their opinions when we are there."

Lobbying simply doesn't work at Bilderberg. It's a special place in space and time where politicians are immune to influence.

It makes you wonder why they spend so long discussing things, year after year, if no one who attends alters their opinions.

They might just as well stay locked away in their hotel rooms, flicking between QVC and true-life movies about baseball players with hepatitis.

Clarke gave parliament a curiously skewed description of the Bilderberg conference.

"The people who attend," he said, "are drawn from the worlds of government, politics, academia, defence and journalism."

No mention, oddly, of the two main sectors represented at the conference: high finance and big business.

According to Clarke's jovial caricature, the conference is merely "an off-the-record, informal discussion" between people "who are indeed distinguished, but who are not remotely interested in getting together to decide or organise anything."

Clarke is wilfully missing the point.

Plenty of the people there (Barosso, Osborne, Lagarde, Cameron & Co.) are absolutely in the business of deciding and organising things (things like, for example, international trade deals).

And plenty of other corporate delegates are obviously "interested" in how these decisions are going to be pan out. A large number of them are senior members of powerful lobbying organisations; in many instances, they're the heads of these lobby groups. It's their job to try and make sure things are "organised" in favour of the business interests they are representing.

It's not that lobbyists shouldn't lobby, or that politicians shouldn't thrash out issues with interested parties.

Behind Closed Doors

Bilderberg is an annual conference attended by politicians, industry leaders, royalty and media designed to foster dialogue between Europe and North America, however it's closed-door and off-the-record policy is not appreciated by transparency campaigners. (Photo: REUTERS)
Bilderberg is an annual conference attended by politicians, industry leaders, royalty and media designed to foster dialogue between Europe and North America (Reuters)
The problem is how, at the Bilderberg summit in particular, the lobbying gets done.

And then gets chuckled off as nothing by the likes of Clarke (a member of the Bilderberg steering committee).

At least the lobby groups themselves are pretty honest.

"BAB has long been a supporter of the proposed trade deal" says the group's Managing Director, Jeffries Briginshaw, in a statement following the TTIP announcement.

The question now is: how much of this "supporting" went on behind closed doors at Bilderberg?

And if historically large trade deals are being discussed at Bilderberg by finance ministers, EU Commission presidents, prime ministers and high-finance lobbyists, how come that's taking place in private?

The discussions at Bilderberg take place under "Chatham House rules", which are all well and good for ensuring a frank and open discussion, but they also give useful cover to powerful lobbying interests.

And that's not so good.

Except for the lobbyists, of course. For them, it's Christmas.

[outsider]

Urgent - write within 48 hours: (and spread the request to others):
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/page/s/tell-ttip-negotiators-not-to-le t-corporations-sue-governments#petition


Do you want to live in a world in which multinational corporations can sue the UK government for raising the minimum wage? [1] Or how about a world where big tobacco companies can sue the UK for billions of pounds for introducing a plain cigarette packaging law? [2]

Scarily, this could happen if TTIP - the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership - is passed. It’s basically a Christmas wish-list for big businesses - one with no benefit to ordinary people. Right now, the negotiations are going on behind closed doors. But the devastating consequences will affect us all. We have an opportunity - but only for the next 48 hours - to stop one of the worst parts of the deal.

Thanks to massive people-powered campaigns across Europe, the TTIP negotiating team opened a consultation on the Investor-To-State Dispute Settlement - ISDS. It’s a complex name that covers up a nasty rule that’ll let corporations sue our government for putting their duty to ordinary people before businesses' profits. [3]

Together, we need to do all we can to get ISDS dropped from the deal - but the consultation closes in just 48 hours time. This is the first time ordinary people like us will have a chance to have a say on any part of TTIP. Let’s make sure the negotiating team gets the message loud and clear - we don’t want big businesses to dictate laws to our government.

We only have two days left. So far the negotiating team has only heard from shady lobbyists. We need to tell them why this deal is terrible for ordinary people. The consultation doesn’t accept identical entries so we each need to write our own. But you don’t need to be an expert. And there are tips to help you on the web page. Just click the link below to write in:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/EU-TTIP-Consultation

We know that when thousands of us feed into consultations, we're too powerful to ignore. Just last week, the UK government went back on its plans to privatise child protection services after 70,000 38 Degrees members fed into their consultation. [4] When we take part in consultations like this, we create waves.

The TTIP team is vulnerable right now. Just this month the US embassy in Berlin offered grants of $20,000 for campaigns in support of TTIP! [5] So this is a perfect time to show them how united we are in our opposition. And we’ll be in good company - we’ll be joining hundreds of thousands of voices across Europe who have already spoken out against the deal.

The consultation closes in just two days. It won't take long to write into it. Please click here to email the TTIP team now.
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/EU-TTIP-Consultation


Thanks for being involved,

Bryony, Megan, Blanche, James & the 38 Degrees team


P.S Thanks so much to the thousands of 38 Degrees members who chipped in to fund a massive people-powered ad campaign to raise public awareness of TTIP. The ad designs are being worked out right now so they're as good as possible. If you haven’t chipped in yet, but would like to help buy as many posters and billboards as possible, you can donate here:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/TTIP-Ad-Fundraiser

Notes:
[1] Touchstone: Special courts for foreign investors have no place in trade deals:
http://touchstoneblog.org.uk/2013/11/special-courts-for-foreign-invest ors-have-no-place-in-trade-deals/
[2] BBC: Philip Morris sues Australia over cigarette packaging:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-15815311
[3] Independent: British sovereignty ‘at risk’ from EU-US trade deal: UK in danger of surrendering judicial independence to multinational corporations:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/british-sovereignty-at-r isk-from-euus-trade-deal-uk-in-danger-of-surrendering-judicial-indepen dence-to-multinational-corporations-warn-activists-9057318.html
[4] 38 Degrees Blog: Yes. We did it!
http://blog.38degrees.org.uk/tag/child-protection-services/
[5] EurActiv: US embassy in Berlin sparks TTIP twitter tangle
http://www.euractiv.com/sections/trade-industry/us-embassy-berlin-spar ks-ttip-twitter-tangle-302869

[outsider]

Demo Victoria Saturday 12th July:

#NoTTIP London Demo - National Day of Action
http://www.meetup.com/ORG-London/events/193474522/

Saturday, July 12, 2014 12:00 PM


Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

1 Victoria Street, SW1H 0ET, London (map)


Behind closed doors, the EU and US are planning the biggest corporate power grab in a decade. Join us in central London on 12 July to say no!

If agreed, the EU-US Trade Deal (TTIP) would undermine rules that protect digital rights and privacy, workers' rights and the environment would be undermined.


Take to the streets with ORG and a huge coalition of campaign groups in central London on 12 July at 12 noon.
We're meeting with over 600 other activists outside the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) for a creative action with art, theatre, workshops and music.
Together we will raise our voices in the heart of Whitehall, transforming a space with art, theatre, workshops and music -- and kick-starting a new movement with the power to win.

More details on on www.noTTIP.org.uk and on the Facebook event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/231572717052962/

See you on 12 July!


How will TTIP damage our digital rights?

• TTIP is looking to be an ACTA 2.0 with the US government pushing for extremely restrictive copyright laws.

• TTIP will provide data-driven corporations, such as Facebook and Google, with the power to override positive EU data protection laws.

• The Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) section of TTIP enables corporations to sue governments for establishing laws which could harm their international investments. Laws which protect our digital rights, such as the current EU data protection laws, may well be attacked or blocked.

• The treaty has been shrouded in secrecy, with corporate lobbyists and politicians trying to hurry it through, making the negotiation process entirely opaque and undemocratic.

[outsider]

Exposed: United States Accused of Forcing European Union to Accept Tar Sands Oil:
http://www.occupy.com/article/exposed-united-states-accused-forcing-eu ropean-union-accept-tar-sands-oil

'ewly publicized internal documents suggest that U.S. negotiators are working to permanently block a landmark regulatory proposal in the European Union aimed at addressing climate change, and instead to force European countries to import particularly dirty forms of oil.

Environmentalists, working off of documents released through open government requests, say U.S. trade representatives are responding to frustrations voiced by the oil and gas industry here. Last week, U.S. and E.U. officials were in Brussels for the sixth round of talks towards what would be the world’s largest free-trade area, known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

“These documents show that the U.S. is simply not interested in an open, transparent [negotiation] process,” Bill Waren, a senior trade analyst with Friends of the Earth U.S., a watchdog group, told IPS. “Rather, U.S. representatives have been lobbying on the [E.U. regulatory proposal] in a way that reflects the interests of Chevron, ExxonMobil and others.”

The oil industry has repeatedly expressed concern over the European Union’s potential tightening of regulations around transport fuel emissions, first proposed in 2009 for what’s known as the Fuel Quality Directive (FQD). Yet according to a report released last Thursday by Friends of the Earth Europe, the sector now appears to have convinced the U.S. government to work to permanently block the implementation of this standard.

Current negotiating texts for the TTIP talks are unavailable. But critics say the negotiations are forcing open the massive E.U market for a particularly heavy form of petroleum known as tar sands oil, significant deposits of which are in the Canadian province of Alberta.

“Since the adoption of the revised Fuel Quality Directive in 2009, the international oil companies … petroleum refiners, the Cana­dian government and the Albertan provincial government have spent enormous resources and used aggressive lobbying tactics to delay and weaken the implementation proposal,” the new report, which is being supported by a half-dozen environmental groups, states.

“The oil industry and the Canadian government … are afraid that the FQD could set a precedent by recognizing and labeling tar sands as highly polluting and inspire similar legislation elsewhere....”

'..The new disclosures have indeed caught the attention of the U.S. Congress. Last week, 11 lawmakers renewed a line of questioning from last year about Washington’s influence on E.U. tar sands policy. “We reiterate that actions pressuring the E.U. to alter its FQD would be inconsistent with the goals expressed in President Obama’s Climate Action Plan,” the lawmakers wrote to the U.S. trade representative, Michael Froman, “and we remain concerned that trade and investment rules may be being used to undermine or threaten important climate policies of other nations.” Yet such concerns may already be too late. Last month, media reports suggested that the European Commission is now considering a proposal to go with the U.S.-pushed “averaging” approach to its fuel-emissions calculation. The same week, Europe’s first shipment of tar sands oil – 570,000 barrels from Canada – reportedly arrived on Spanish shores.'

[outsider]

The TTIP-ing point‏:
(email I got from SumOfUs):

'They really didn’t see this coming. The EU received over 150,000 submissions -- with over a quarter of those from SumOfUs members -- against TTIP, the trade deal that could end up being one of the biggest corporate power grabs in history.

Karl De Gucht, the EU’s trade commissioner, called the unprecedented number of submissions a “concentrated attack”. We call it democracy in action. His bizarre response sends a clear signal that our tactics are working.

It’s time to ramp up the pressure to bring more voices from the people into the dusty, elite-driven world of EU politics. Our next step to fight this trade deal is a European-wide, people-funded movement against TTIP.

Here is the plan: Together with over 150 partner organisations from 18 EU countries we are launching a European Citizens Initiative that calls for a stop of TTIP. But we have our work cut out for us. We need to collect 1 million signatures in at least seven European countries.

And we can only do this with your support.

Could you please chip in £15 to support the European Citizens Initiative against TTIP?

Last week we handed in our proposal for the European Citizens Initiative to the EU Commission. We expect to kick-start the movement in September -- we will throw everything we have at the EU to make sure they hear the message loud and clear: Europeans do not want this trade deal.

Once we have collected 1 million signatures, the EU Commission has to listen to us in a formal procedure. Last year the European Citizens Initiative “right2water” showed what is possible -- they succeeded in getting the Commission to recognise water as a human right.

To ensure that the ECI on TTIP is just as successful we need your help.

Running a campaign this size doesn’t come cheap and we can only do it together. Two full-time staff are coordinating the European-wide campaign work. We are developing a software to collect the signatures online. We are planning to print and send thousands of packages with information material and signature lists so that TTIP is an issue on every market stall in even the remotest village in Slovenia.

So many SumOfUs members are standing up to stop the TTIP. Will you join them?

Yes, I will give £15 to support the European Citizens Initiative against TTIP.

Thanks for all you do,

Jon, Paul and the team at SumOfUs

**********
More information:

ECI against TTIP and CETA to start soon, Democracy International

[Whitehall_Bin_Men]

@michaelmeacher:
The new EU Commission has marked up a TTIP deal with US a key objective
http://t.co/4ecEpmX3gG

[TonyGosling]

TTIP: An economic NATO in formation
ASLI AY
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?pageID=449&nID=72332&New sCatID=396

Share on Facebook Trade liberalization continues to be the lowest-hanging fruit that can boost global economic expansion. The United States, having committed to finalizing two major trade agreements in parallel – the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with the EU and the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) with 12 Pacific nations – sits squarely in the center of this opportunity.

While the TPP is largely driven by America’s desire to expand its ties to fast-growing Asia and give assurances to Pacific nations against real and perceived security threats from China, with the TTIP, the U.S. aspires to create a deeply integrated transatlantic market composed of the 28 EU member countries and the U.S.

The TTIP is the economic NATO. The TTIP is the new frontier in trade liberalization, an effort to write the new global trade constitution, a blueprint for deep integration trade agreements for the 21st century. The question is: How can Turkey be included in the TTIP?

When the U.S. and the EU launched the TTIP negotiations, Turkey requested a seat at the table, as per its rights as a country with a Customs Union with the EU. This request was duly rejected by both parties. The argument was that Turkey’s inclusion would “complicate the process,” which sounded like a technical excuse, but was actually a politically expedient one. Although Turkey has been vocal in its desire to develop a deeper trade relationship with the U.S., regrettably it has laid virtually none of the groundwork required to shape public opinion in the U.S. Thus, the decline of Turkey’s request was not surprising.

For now, Turkey is stuck with a limited and toothless Bilateral Investment Treaty with the U.S., and while the 20-year-old Customs Union continues to be the foundation of the Turkey-EU economic relationship, it was never designed to bring the type of enhanced cohesion and deeper economic integration envisioned within the TTIP. Given the high stakes, Turkey cannot afford to give up. But what realistic option does Turkey have?

In a relatively recent and important development, the U.S. has advocated for Japan’s eventual inclusion in the TPP through a provision called “docking,” a clause that would permit Japan and other countries to join the TPP at a later date without suffering any disadvantages.

For docking to be an option for Turkey, the TTIP would need to include a generic docking clause in the agreement. Turkey should initiate a major lobbying effort with the U.S. administration, key leaders in Congress, and EU decision-makers to write the necessary docking provisions into the TTIP. This would grant all countries that have longstanding trade agreements with the U.S. or the EU the right to apply to and join the TTIP.

Turkey should build a coalition of like-minded countries such as Australia, Mexico, Norway, South Korea, Canada and Switzerland, among others. This must be done before the agreement goes to the U.S. Congress for a vote and to the EU Parliament for ratification.

The central tenet of this campaign should be the “tipping point” argument. As the TTIP strives to set the global standards for deep integration trade agreements, it would be beneficial if all American and European allies with sizable economies could be signatories and participants.

If there is any silver lining to this, it is the fact that Turkey still has about two years to pursue the opportunity to be included in the TTIP. Negotiations can only be completed after President Obama leaves office on Jan. 20, 2017. In all probability, the next U.S. president will sign the TTIP into law.

Turkey has powerful arguments about why it should be included in the TTIP. The key message should be that the inclusion of Turkey in the TTIP would contribute visibly to the TTIP’s economic, strategic and political goals. Turkey’s alignment with the West has been a critical geostrategic issue for the U.S. and the EU, and a top political issue for Turkey for the last three quarters of a century. If successful, Turkey’s inclusion in the TTIP would be a crowning economic victory that would positively redefine this trilateral relationship.

* Aslı Ay is the Managing Partner of US Policy Metrics in New York. She is also a Young Society Leader (YSL) of the American Turkish Society (ATS). This is an abridged version of the original article in Turkish Policy Quarterly’s Summer 2014 issue. For more information, visit turkishpolicy.com

[TonyGosling]

TTIP Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership - secret EU/US legal merger

Link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zgkojIElZM

[outsider]

'US wants sanctions to split Europe into NATO & NOT':
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0bkaQ9fb28&feature=em-uploademail

Joe Biden admits they forced Europe to accept sanctions against Russia.
A commentator goes on to say the TTIP is an economic NATO.

For Londoners, there is an Anti-TTIP Demo this Saturday 11th October, at Parliament Square from 14.00 hrs. (details on Calendar).

[outsider]

WTO Says U.S. Consumers Don’t Need to Know Where Meat Comes From:
http://ecowatch.com/2014/10/24/wto-cool-meat-label/?

'This week, the World Trade Organization (WTO) finally issued a decision in the challenge made by Mexico and Canada to the U.S.’s country-of-origin (COOL) labeling rules for meat. And environmental and food safety groups are hopping mad, as WTO upheld the contention made by those countries, supported by multi0national meat packers, that the rules unfairly impede global trade.
“The meatpacking lobby has lost the COOL debate from the court of public opinion to the Court of Appeals to the halls of Congress so they are taking their complaint to the faceless unelected bureaucrats in Geneva,” said Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch. “When the meat cannot get its way here in America, it is trying to use the WTO to overturn the will of the American people.”

The current U.S. rules, which went into effect in 2013, require that meat sold in groceries be labeled to show separately where the animal was born, raised and slaughtered. The WTO’s ruling agrees that those regulations unfairly discriminate against imported meat to give an unfair edge to domestic products. In the ongoing dispute, then-Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack suggested last November that WTO should resolve the dispute and that the U.S. would abide by what the WTO decided.

Meat packers insists that the labeling rules have cost them profits, and the Canadian government threatened to put a tariff on U.S. meats and other food products imported from the U.S. The North American Meat Association and the American Meat Institute hailed the decision. But Food & Water Watch said that consumers deserved to know where their meat came from.

“People have the right to know where the food they feed their families comes from,” said Hauter. “It is nonsensical that a label that lets consumers know the origin of their food is a trade barrier.”

At a telephone press conference yesterday, Roger Johnson, president of the National Farmers Union, and Danni Beer, president of the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association, joined Food & Water Watch’s Patrick Goodall and Lori Wallach from Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, emphasizing the divide between meat producers and multinational meat packers who may blend meat from different countries, the latter claiming—much as opponents of GMO labeling do—that providing information to consumers is an onerous, unsustainable expense.

Johnson pointed out that meat packers tried to have the COOL labeling regulations stripped during the 2014 U.S. Farm Bill debate making such claims but failed to do so, while Beer said, “We don’t think keeping track of the country of origin through the process is that costly. We just want our consumers to have full information and let the free market system work.”

Wallach suggested that the overestimate of costs and other inaccurate facts in the ruling, provided by the meatpacking industry, provide grounds for a legal appeal. The U.S. Trade Representatives office has said that is one of the options on the table.'

Though this is relevant to the US, and is not actually TTIP, it's just the sort of thing International beauroprats (sorry, beaurocrats!) will be able to shove down our throats if TTIP is approved.
And any meat imported from the US will be highly suspect (as if it wasn't high enough suspect already).
The WTO (and whatever deciding group of 'people' will decide TTIP disputes) are slaves of the Banksters and Corporations, definitely NOT our friends!

There's a meeting on TTIP and the Banks in London tomorrow (25th October) at Unite House, 128 Theobalds Rd.

Ruled by Banks – The City in policy-making in the UK and beyond

A one day symposium on the role of City of London transnational financial services in policy-making, including international ‘trade’ policy (TTIP)
Is the UK a pawn in the game of transnational financial service global ambitions?

With speakers on deregulation, NHS and other public service privatisations, the ‘trade’ agenda, tax, financial service regulation and financialisation.

Sat 25 Oct 10 am for 10.15, till 4. 30

UNITE building, 128 Theobalds Rd, Holborn
(5 mins north of Holborn tube, via Southampton Row, next to Holborn Hotel

[outsider]

People power is working! After months of protests across Europe the EU is wavering on the EU-US trade deal (TTIP). Leading representatives including the newly appointed EU president Jean-Claude Juncker have hinted that ISDS could be removed from TTIP.

This is a crucial moment to keep up the pressure on decision makers

More than 750,000 people have already signed the European petition to stop TTIP. Our pressure on policy makers is working, but we need your support to make sure we defeat this undemocratic trade deal.

Help us reach 1 million voices against TTIP

TTIP threatens to transfer power from elected governments to unaccountable corporations by giving big business a much bigger say in law-making. And if that wasn’t bad enough TTIP could also undermine some of our most precious rights and regulation to protect our environment, workers and food safety.

Add your voice to the protest against undemocratic trade deals like TTIP

Together we can defeat TTIP and fight for a fair trade system.

Best wishes,

Nick Dearden, WDM


Connect with us:

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Our mailing address is:

World Development Movement
66 Offley Road
London SW9 0LS
Phone: 020 7820 4900


Also: 'TTIP will not be approved unless ISDS is dropped':
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/1c06a35c-5b92-11e4-a674-00144feab7de.html#ax zz3I0RLg23b

'High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/1c06a35c-5b92-11e4-a674-00144feab7de.html#ix zz3I0STBseS


Sir, The FT is right that the EU-US trade deal is at risk (editorial, October 24). Not, as you claim, because European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has given Frans Timmermans control over investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), but because uncritical supporters refuse to drop the controversial and unpopular ISDS in the face of widespread opposition.

The fact is that the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership will never get the approval of the European parliament and every national parliament in the EU (which it will need) if it includes ISDS. And why is it necessary? What is wrong with the rule of law in the US and EU that requires a special arrangement for investors?

The European Trade Union Confederation, for example, is willing to support TTIP if it does not contain ISDS, if it enforces labour standards and excludes public services. We do not want to be put in a position of campaigning against TTIP because an EU-US trade agreement that could be in the public interest is being captured by vested interests. Those who treat TTIP as if it were a holy text, which cannot be amended by mere humans wanting some democratic input, may force us into opposition.

Bernadette Ségol

General Secretary,

European Trade Union Confederation,

Brussels, Belgium

[outsider]

Act now to stop these Trojan Horse Trade Treaties:
https://www.foe.co.uk/news/act-now-stop-these-trojan-horse-trade-treat ies?

Sign online petition, help them reach 1 million petitioners.

[outsider]

Act now to stop these Trojan Horse Trade Treaties:
https://www.foe.co.uk/news/act-now-stop-these-trojan-horse-trade-treat ies?

Sign online petition, help them reach 1 million petitioners.

[outsider]

This isn't TTIP, but it's the sort of thing that TTIP will hugely exacerbate:

Swedish company Vattenfall is suing Germany for 4.7 billion Euros:
http://action.sumofus.org/a/vattenfall-lawsuit/?akid=8267.1189620.j-kO H7&rd=1&sub=fwd&t=2

'Energy company Vattenfall is suing Germany for phasing out nuclear power and replacing it with renewables. In a secret court, the company is demanding a whopping 4.7 billion Euros in compensation.

This lawsuit could have massive repercussions for other European countries turning towards renewables to replace climate-destroying traditional energy supplies. Vattenfall is not the only one lining up to squeeze Germany for making the right decision. Energy giants RWE and Eon are also demanding millions of Euros.

We can’t let energy companies get away with this and force our democratically-elected governments to their knees.

Call on Vattenfall to drop the lawsuit against Germany!

After the tragedy in Fukushima, Germany started taking a closer look at some of its nuclear power plants to avoid a similar catastrophe. Two decisions were made. First, old and malfunctioning reactors were to be shut down immediately. Second, there was to be a phase-out of nuclear energy by 2022 and a move towards renewables.

These decisions turned Germany into a leader on renewable energy production worldwide almost overnight. Germany is planning to have 80% of its energy provided by renewables by 2050. The new policy also aspires to increase energy efficiency by 50 percent and reduce carbon emissions by 80%.

A win for the planet, the people and our children. For once, it is big business who stands to lose. And Vattenfall and Co. want to make sure they don’t go down without a fight.

Vattenfall is suing Germany for billions in an international arbitration court in Washington. And the game is rigged. These secret investor court hearings are taking place behind closed doors. The tribunals are biased in favour of investors, with corporate lawyers often acting as the judges and parties.

Vattenfall is one of the biggest energy companies in Europe. It’s doing badly financially, and is extremely vulnerable to public opinion. It cannot afford to lose any more customers right now. If we stand together as Europeans and demand that Vattenfall drop the lawsuit against Germany, we will stand a chance!

Call on Vattenfall to stop suing Germany over nuclear phase-out!

**********
More information:

Swedish utility Vattenfall sues Germany over nuclear phaseout, Europe online magazine, 15 October 2014
Vattenfall sues Germany over phase-out policy, World Nuclear News, 15 October 2014

Please sign the online petition:
http://action.sumofus.org/a/vattenfall-lawsuit/?akid=8267.1189620.j-kO H7&rd=1&sub=fwd&t=2

[outsider]

Here's the latest anti-TTIP Newsletter; please read and sign the ECI:
http://www.newsletter-webversion.de/?c=0-4449-6797m3-vq2

There is also info on CETA, which is just as bad as TTIP. That's what the petition is about.

[outsider]

Just last week, a new leak on the world’s dirtiest trade deal emerged that confirmed our worst fears about TTIP. The deal gives big business unprecedented power over decision-making across Europe. And the losers will be us -- European citizens.

The leaked text started out as complicated legalese -- but when our legal experts broke it down into plain language, the news was the most shocking of all the leaks we’ve seen so far. Chlorinated chicken, GMO veggies, and chemicals in our food that can damage the development of our children are just three examples of the devastating effects TTIP will have on our day-to-day lives.

The European Commission has been blasting out on all horns to put a positive spin on TTIP. So we made this video to counter the spin and hot air coming from the Commission. And given this latest leak, making sure as many people as possible see the video has never been more important.

Click here to watch the video and then share it with your friends:
http://action.sumofus.org/a/ttip-video/?akid=9195.1189620.dbH15O&rd=1& sub=fwd&t=3

Find out the truth behind TTIP.

The leak shows how big business will be able to call the shots in Brussels, via a new chapter misleadingly called “regulatory cooperation”. Regulatory Cooperation is bad news for consumers, workers and the environment. It means that corporations can co-write our regulation. The European Commission seems intent to open the doors to massive influence by big business.

This dangerous attack on democracy must be stopped now. This week, European leaders are meeting with their US counterparts to begin the next round of negotiations on TTIP. As usual, we’re are left in the dark about what is being negotiated.

But this leak gives us a pretty clear picture about the real benefactors of this deal: big corporations like Monsanto, Bayer, Exxon Mobil and Nestle. That’s why we need to react quickly and make sure everyone sees our video.

Watch the video and share it with your friends.

The only thing that can fight corporate power is people power. Let’s show European leaders that we will not take this attack on our democracy lying down.

Thanks for all you do,

Anne, Hannah and the team at SumOfUs

P.S. If you haven't already, could you chip in to help us launch a massive full-page ad directed at European and American leaders negotiating TTIP in Brussels this week?

***********
More information:

Regulatory Cooperation, Stop-TTIP coalition, 29 January 2015

[outsider]

Stop TISA the secret trade agreement:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_tisa_en_eu_sas/?bdjYcab&v=53213

'TTIP was just the beginning - now a new secret deal called TISA threatens to privatise our drinking water and health services, and even hand our personal bank details to the US. But together we can still stop the shady negotiations!

Negotiated behind closed doors, TISA - the Trade in Services Agreement - has far-reaching consequences. Insiders say it will push the privatisation of our water, electricity and health systems, and put data protection at risk. But massive citizen's protests already put a spanner in the works for TTIP, a similar trade agreement, and negotiators are doing all they can to prevent the same public outrage around TISA. With a huge petition ahead of next week's negotiation round, we can turn their plans upside down.

TISA negotiations are a well-kept secret, many people have never heard of them, and the content of discussions is not revealed. Let's change this now! Sign the petition to stop the negotiations and spread the word to keep key public services out of the hands of corporations!'


Sign petition and spread the news...

[outsider]

Stop TTIP Newsletter:
http://www.newsletter-webversion.de/?c=0-4zm9-6797m3-qzm

Latest news from TTIP

[outsider]

There's a TTIP Day of Action, with local activists around the country going out and getting signatures on 11th April:

http://www.newsletter-webversion.de/?c=0-5lms-6797m3-oyw

[outsider]

Demand That Congress Reject Fast Track for the Trans-Pacific Partnership:
http://activism.thenation.com/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY= 15408&tag=408email2&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=acti vism_atleast_passive&utm_campaign=Activism-%20TPP

'Demand That Congress Reject Fast Track for the Trans-Pacific Partnership


Congress is expected to introduce a bill to grant President Obama "fast track" authority for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a secretive trade deal that advocates have called “NAFTA on steroids.” After twenty years of NAFTA, it's clear what these trade agreements do: they push jobs overseas, weaken food and consumer safety standards, circumvent environmental laws, restrict Internet freedom and roll back financial protections.

Fast track authority would allow the President to sign the TPP before Congress has voted to approve it, and then railroad the deal through Congress in only 90 days with limited debate and no amendments allowed.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Wall Street and the nation’s biggest corporations love these deals, but the American people overwhelmingly—and on a bipartisan basis—oppose them....'

(Go to link to sign e-petition)

[outsider]

Like TTIP & CETA, TPP will badly affect Europe ('The Trans-Pacific Partnership and its impact on EU trade': http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/briefing_note/join/2013/4 91479/EXPO-INTA_SP(2013)491479_EN.pdf )

Following is an email I got from 'Oregon Right to Know':

'Of all the attacks on our food system, this may be the most insidious:

Right now, the Obama administration is engaged in secretive negotiations with representatives from 11 other nations to push through a massive trade deal called the Trans Pacific Partnership, or TPP.

The TPP is like NAFTA on steroids, giving incredible power to multinational agribusiness companies at the expense of small farms and our environment. In fact, the United States’ lead TPP negotiator for agriculture is a former Monsanto lobbyist!

Click here to read Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz’s take on the TPP in the New York Times >> 'On the Wrong Side of Globalization':
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/15/on-the-wrong-side-of-g lobalization/?_r=0

This is scary stuff. Under the TPP, corporations could actually sue local governments in secretive international trade tribunals for enacting pro-consumer regulations that hurt corporate profits – effectively giving companies like Monsanto the ability to veto the will of the people in favor of their own self interest.

Because the TPP is being negotiated in secret, we don’t yet know whether it will directly address GMO labeling, but it’s likely that at the very least it will punish countries that enact GMO labeling laws, if it doesn’t ban labeling laws outright.

Read more about the potentially devastating impact of the TPP on GMO labelling: 'Will a Secretive International Trade Deal Ban GMO Labeling?':
http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/will-secretive-international-trade-d eal-ban-gmo-labeling-trans-pacific-partnership

The threat that the TPP poses to our food supply is real because it favors corporations’ “right” to profit over consumers’ right to have a say in what our food contains and how it’s produced.

Thanks for taking this opportunity to learn more about the TPP, and please be sure to spread the word!

Paige Richardson
Director, Oregon Right to Know

These psychotic, sociopathic Warmongering creatures are really intent on hitting the people every which way, and from all angles at once.
And STILL people who should know better (Left activists, Climate activists, Human Rights activists and so forth) cannot see the 'False Flags' that scream out to be noticed, right under their noses.
Oh, sure, they agree the PTB are trashing the planet, polluting the seas, overfishing, scamming the 'banking' system, lying to justify wars of aggression, killing Blacks and Hispanics on the streets with impunity, but 'Oh, no! THEY would NEVER kill their own citizens in such numbers as 9/11 and 7/7!'.
Well, oh ye blind and foolish people that refuse to face the facts, repent when it's too late! And remember, 'Duck & Cover', WHEN the balloon goes up! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKqXu-5jw60
(or tuck your head between your legs, and kiss your a** goodbye!).

[outsider]

This is not TTIP, but gives a good example of what happens if TTIP is signed:

(From AVAAZ):
Incredible! Nearly 750,000 of us joined in just a few days. Sign now -- let's take 1 million names into the court!

'Big tobacco is suing Uruguay for their anti-smoking laws. If they win, it will threaten public health laws everywhere and prove one corporation can trump the public good, even when its product kills! But if we launch a giant call and Avaaz hires a world class legal team to carry our voices into the courtroom, the judges won’t be able to turn a blind eye. Click to join now:

SIGN THE PETITION: https://secure.avaaz.org/en/uruguay_vs_big_tobacco_rb/?bdjYcab&v=56987


'Dear friends,

The tobacco giant Philip Morris is suing Uruguay for having some of the best anti-smoking laws in the world, and there’s a good chance it could win, unless we step in.

It's a scary reality: a single company, with a product that kills, could overturn laws that protect our health. This court has already come under fire for not listening to the public in similar lawsuits. Let's ensure they listen now: if we launch a giant call and work with a world class legal team to carry our voices into the courtroom, the judges won’t be able to turn a blind eye.

Let’s tell the court that this doesn’t just affect Uruguay -- if Big Tobacco gets their way, it opens the door for challenges everywhere -- at least 4 other countries are in the legal crosshairs, and many more have anti-smoking laws at risk.

We have to move fast -- the court is already hearing arguments. Click to protect our public health and our democracies from corporate greed -- each of our names will be submitted to the court:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/uruguay_vs_big_tobacco_rb/?bdjYcab&v=56987

Uruguay requires 80% of the cigarette package to be covered with medical warnings and graphic images. Smoking had reached crisis levels, killing around 7 Uruguayans each day, but since this law was put in place smoking has decreased every year! Now tobacco giant Philip Morris is arguing that the warning labels leave no space for its trademarks.

It's all part of a global Philip Morris strategy to sue and intimidate countries. The company already slapped an expensive lawsuit on Australia -- and if it wins against Uruguay, it could run cases against more than a hundred other countries including France, Norway, New Zealand, and Finland who are all considering new life-saving legislation.

Experts say Philip Morris has a good chance of winning because it’s using a closed door international tribunal that ruled for corporations two-thirds of the time last year. And their rulings are binding, even though many of the judges are private citizens with corporate ties instead of impartial legal experts. It’s up to us to force them to consider the devastating effect their ruling could have on health across the world.

Uruguay has its own legal team, but they’re rightly focused on arguing their individual defence. We can submit a unique legal argument about how this ruling would set a precedent for every country with smoking laws and a similar trade agreement. And we can show the court that public opinion is behind them if they rule in favour of Uruguay and health protection everywhere.

The more of us sign, the harder it is for the court to ignore us. Click below to join the call and forward this email to everyone:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/uruguay_vs_big_tobacco_rb/?bdjYcab&v=56987



When big corporations launch deadly attacks on our public good, our community has jumped into action -- from Monsanto to H&M, we've made sure that profits don't come before people. This is our chance to do it again, for all of us.

With hope,

Emma, Maria Paz, Katie, Mais, Alice, Ricken, Risalat and the whole Avaaz team

MORE INFORMATION

Uruguay sued by cigarette makers over anti-smoking laws (BBC)
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-30708063

Philip Morris Sues Uruguay Over Graphic Cigarette Packaging (NPR)
http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/09/15/345540221/philip-morr is-sues-uruguay-over-graphic-cigarette-packaging

Big Tobacco puts countries on trial as concerns over TTIP deals mount (The Independent)
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/big-t obacco-puts-countries-on-trial-as-concerns-over-ttip-deals-mount-98074 78.html

The Secret Trade Courts (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/27/opinion/27mon3.html?_r=1&

Recent Trends in IIAs and ISDS (UN Conference on Trade and Development)
http://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/webdiaepcb2015d1_en.pdf

The arbitration game (The Economist)
http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21623756-governmen ts-are-souring-treaties-protect-foreign-investors-arbitration

[outsider]

Though this is the 'Trans Pacific Partnership' (TPP), it would still be able to stop GMO labelling (or indeed, marketing) in Europe, as well as in the US and elsewhere:

'Tell Congress to Say NO to Monsanto and the TPP!':
http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/sign/stop_tpp_fast_track_Monsantos_ secret_trade_deal_today/?t=2&akid=1522.863753.vUCqq8

THIS CORPORATE TAKEOVER OF OUR ALREADY PATHETIC 'DEMOCRACY'
HAS TO BE STOPPED!

'Tell Congress to Say NO to Monsanto and the TPP!

BREAKING: We just got word that a final deal has been cut in Washington DC between corporate lobbyists and the U.S. Senate to move forward with the Fast Track agreement for the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), the disastrous trade deal that will destroy our basic democratic rights to protect corporate profits! Tragically, the TPP could make make it illegal to label GMOs is the U.S. and Europe.

Right now 600 corporate lobbyists are working furiously behind closed doors in Congress, trying to close the deal on the TPP – a massive trade deal so secret that most members of Congress have never even been allowed to read the details of the agreement. If allowed to pass, the TPP could outlaw GMO labeling and even county bans on GMOs and Monsanto’s toxic cancer-causing products.

Just as we are on the verge of winning GMO labeling in the US, these secret negotiations could eliminate the ability of countries around the world to label GMOs or impose common sense restrictions on the sale of genetically engineered seed and food in their countries if Monsanto and other biotech companies get their way.

Demand an end to secret trade deals, stop the fast track of the TPP. Stand with Food Democracy Now! - don't let corporations pass the Global Monsanto Protection Act on steroids!'

[outsider]

Protect our health, Stop Monsanto:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/monsanto_dont_silence_science_loc_eu/?bdjY cab&v=57274

Please sign the petition, regardless of position on AVAAZ, which I agree is definitely dodgy.
If TTIP/CETA/TPP pass, Monsanto would have no trouble getting governments to allow the use of 'probably carcinogenic' Glyphosate, which is already used on some UK food crops, including wheat and barley (bread and beer!).

[outsider]

More on TPP (from 'Fight For The Future', FFTF):

Bits and pieces of every bad Internet policy we’ve ever defeated are being rolled into one massive, secret deal called the Trans-Pacific Partnership -- and last week, legislators introduced a bill to Fast Track its negotiations.

Help us flood Congress with calls and emails this Thursday demanding they oppose the TPP.

Dear Fight for the Future member,

If you’re not quite sure yet why the Trans-Pacific Partnership is so bad, read on below.

If you already understand that it’s one of the gravest threats to the Internet we’ve faced, click here, join the Internet Vote, and help us make sure Congress gets flooded with calls and emails on Thursday demanding they oppose the TPP.

I want to apologize in advance for how long the rest of this email is -- it’s just that when it comes to the TPP, there’s no shortage of reasons we need to stop it.

The biggest problem with the Trans-Pacific Partnership is that there’s absolutely no public oversight. The only way we know what’s in the TPP right now is from leaks of specific chapters -- and if Fast Track passes, not only won’t we get more details about the TPP, Congress will have to give a single thumbs up or down to the entire thing.

That means we won’t be able to push for specific items to be removed from the deal -- we’ll be stuck with the whole thing, so as of right now the Trans-Pacific Partnership will do all of the following:

•Force sites to remove allegedly infringing content from the web without a court order - scarily similar to SOPA.


•Create harsh criminal penalties for journalists and whistleblowers. Any disclosure of information with "commercial value" would be criminalized -- and there would be absolutely no public interest of free speech exemption.


•Punish Internet users who share copyrighted material, even without any personal gain. Here's the proposed punishment from the leaked text: "sentences of imprisonment as well as monetary fines sufficiently high to provide a deterrent to future acts of infringement." Again, that's potential prison time for sharing something without any personal gain.


•Limit Fair Use to make copyright even more restrictive on creative innovation. Last week, WikiLeaks revealed a series of emails surrounding the TPP where the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) explicitly argued against including any fair use provisions. And it looks pretty clear that if the TPP passes, they'll have their way. That means remixes, sampling, and quoting of copyrighted material could become illegal outside the US.


•Allow foreign corporations to sue the United States government if they think that our laws infringe on their profits. This is, quite simply, the most devastating part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. It opens the door to undermining every good law we've ever passed to protect the Internet -- the only thing corporations have to do is prove they could make more money if those laws didn't exist.


In short, the TPP isn’t just bad — it’s zombie bad. It has parts of every misguided Internet policy we’ve killed over the last decade trying to become law by completely bypassing every part of our democratic process.

That’s why we’re calling Thursday the Internet Vote -- because putting a secret deal like the Trans-Pacific Partnership on a Fast Track is absurdly undemocratic. There’s no public oversight, and to us, that’s just not okay. The Internet Vote is the opposite of that -- a day to remind lawmakers that transparency and openness are how politics are supposed to work.

Click here to join the Internet Vote. Together, let’s use the power of the Web to demand transparency and give people everywhere a voice against censorship.

Here are a few ways you can help beyond signing up:

•Have a website, blog, or tumblr? Get some code here to spread the word about the Internet Vote on your site on April 23rd.


•Have a Twitter account? Join our Twitter campaign to post urgent alerts when the Internet is under attack like it is right now.


•Have friends or family? Share the Internet Vote website with them.


Thanks for standing up for an open Internet,

Fight for the Future

[outsider]

Please ask your MEPs to reject any trade deal that could lock us into a dirty energy future:
http://www.foe.co.uk/act/who-wouldnt-reject-toxic-trade-deal?

'Who wouldn't reject this toxic trade deal?

TTIP threatens to undermine global action on climate change.

Politicians from the EU and the United States are in the middle of negotiating The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. This massive trade deal, commonly known as TTIP, threatens to open up the EU to filthy tar sands and fracked shale gas from the US.

Please ask your MEPs to reject any trade deal that could lock us into a dirty energy future.

[outsider]

A glimmer of light on the TPP front (as well as the Banking front):

'Why Elizabeth Warren Makes Bankers So Uneasy, and So Quiet':
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-05/why-elizabeth-warren -makes-wall-street-tremble

'.....Warren is moving on. In April, she lobbed a new attack at the White House over its refusal to provide details on negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership. “The government doesn’t want you to read this massive new trade agreement. It’s top-secret,” she wrote on her website. “We’ve all seen the tricks and traps that corporations hide in the fine print of contracts. We’ve all seen the provisions they slip into legislation to rig the game in their favor. Now just imagine what they have done working behind closed doors with TPP. We can’t keep the American people in the dark.”

And, of course, the PTB are trying to 'Fast Track' TPP; no time for scrutiny, even if the bought-and-payed-for, or blackmailed, Congressmen and Senators had any intent to scrutinize it.