House leadership has not made any final decisions on its next steps to move Trade Adjustment Assistance — a key component of President Obama’s trade agenda — over the finish line, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) told reporters Monday morning.
McCarthy said that while there have been no decision made on how to move forward, he estimated that it would need to be completed before “the summer’s out,” reports say.
According to Politico, McCarthy did not reveal whether the House would try for a re-do vote on TAA this week.
“There are options that we can take,” the newspaper quoted McCarthy. “The best option right now, the Democrats come to their senses and be able to move TAA.”
The House rejected TAA last week in a vote which found President Obama’s own party overwhelmingly rejecting his trade agenda.
The TAA must pass in order to get Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) — which would provide the president fast-track authority to negotiate trade deals, in particulate the Trans-Pacific Partnership — on his desk.