Elizabeth Warren votes against Obama trade nominee
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Elizabeth Warren was among just four senators to oppose Michael Froman’s nomination as US Trade Representative on Wednesday.
Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, had been seeking a transparency pledge from Froman, whose confirmation was approved on a 93 to 4 vote.
On the Senate floor, Warren said that she has been concerned over ongoing negotiations over an agreement called the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
“I have heard the argument that transparency would undermine the trade representative’s policy to complete the trade agreement because public opposition would be significant,” she said, according to text of her speech provided by her office. “If transparency would lead to widespread public opposition to a trade agreement, then that trade agreement should not be the policy of the United States.”
Warren entered electoral politics after President Obama declined to nominate her to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which she helped establish, amid Republican opposition.
Noah Bierman can be reached at nbierman@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahbierman.
