Obama: Pulling up drawbridge on trade would hurt U.S. workers

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of US diplomatic relations with Singapore, the country’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is joining President Barack Obama at a state dinner in the White House on Tuesday evening – the first held for a Singaporean leader since 1985. He said the United States needs to uphold its end of the bargain because its global reputation is now at stake. Bottle service (in-club parlance that means having a wildly expensive personal bottle of champagne delivered to your private table) starts at $250.

At Tuesday’s conference, Lee expressed his support for the deal.

Republican candidate Donald Trump has rejected the TPP.

The scholarship will fund summer exchange programmes for 50 Singaporean and 50 American students over the course of the next five years and “draw our young people closer together, and get to know each other’s societies, cultures, strengths and opportunities to cooperate together”, said Mr Lee.

The White House has said the agreement would help further break down global trade barriers, open untapped markets, and grow the economy, while providing an important counterbalance to the growing economic strength of China.

“We’ll have to say, on trade, the Americans could not follow through”.

The allies share close economic and security ties, with more than 3,500 US companies having a presence in Singapore.

The free trade agreement involves 12 countries, two of which are the United States and Singapore.

Lee says the world has changed dramatically since the USA and Singapore opened diplomatic relations 50 years ago.

If ratified, the pact, known commonly as the TPP, would seek to strengthen economic ties across the world’s largest ocean by slashing more than 18,000 tariffs between 12 Pacific Rim nations: the United States, Japan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico, Chile and Peru.

A delegate holds an anti-Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement sign during the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, July 25, 2016.

Calling Singapore a “rock solid” partner, Obama welcomed Lee after an elaborate ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, where hundreds of US military members in blue and white uniforms formed an honor guard. He says the US and Singapore share a common vision for a peaceful and prosperous Asia.

Obama and the prime minister plan to meet in the Oval Office before taking questions from reporters. Bernie Sanders campaigned on stopping the TPP from being ratified by Congress and pushed former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton to denounce the deal. Lee will also be honored with a state dinner on Tuesday evening. “It won’t just be a political symbol or a political football”, Obama told a White House news conference with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong during a state visit.

On Monday, Lee urged its ratification, saying it was a “litmus test” of USA credibility. “Not only will the TPP benefit American workers and businesses, it will send a clear signal and a vital signal that America will continue to lead in the Asia Pacific and enhance the partnerships that link our destinies together”, Hsien Loong said.