Americans For Limited Gov’t: Extending ObamaTrade Consideration Would Affirm ‘The Game Is Rigged’

Americans for Limited Government’s Rick Manning is calling on House Republicans to vote against the rule that would allow for consideration of a key portion of Obama’s trade agenda through July 30.

“House leadership set up the rules for considering fast track trade authority for Obama over the objections of 34 of their Republican members. Now House leaders want to move the goal posts and change those rules that [they] fought so hard to get just days ago,” Manning said in reference to the 34 Republicans who voted against a procedural motion on Obama’s trade agenda last week.

According to Manning, whose group has been actively opposing the Obama trade effort, approval of such an extension would show just how “rigged” the system is.

“Should the House move the timeline for consideration all the way to July 31, when the votes are not there today for passage, it would affirm America’s darkest suspicions that the game is rigged in the House’s favor. An extension will allow cynical horse trading to alter votes to occur, resulting in a bad deal for taxpayers,” he said.

After the failure of Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), a key aspect of the Obama trade effort needed in order to get Trade Promotion Authority passed, House Republicans inserted the motion to reconsider the TAA in the rule for the 2016 intelligence authorization bill. The rule will receive a vote Tuesday.

Manning and others have called on Republicans to oppose the rule as a way to further damage the Obama trade effort.

“Americans for Limited Government urges the House to reject any extension of consideration of the trade bill. The leadership has had every advantage and still cannot win. It’s time to put an end to this debate and move on to things that unite Republicans in the House,” Manning said.

While groups are calling for Republicans to oppose the rule, House Republican leadership has already voiced its disapproval of such defections.

Tuesday morning House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) slammed those Republicans who vote against procedural measures.

“I’m not very happy about it,” Boehner said according to Politico. “And I made it pretty clear to the members today I was not very happy. We’re a team and we’ve worked hard to get the majority, we’ve worked hard to stay in the majority and I expect our team to act like a team. And I, frankly, made it pretty clear I wasn’t very happy.”