Key US trade pact vote stalled by Senate Democrats

On 12 May, the US Senate voted 52-45 to proceed with the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill but that was not enough as 60 votes are required under Senate rules. While Republican senators voted for, about a dozen pro-trade Democrats previously expected to join them then insisted they would only support TPA if three other bills were attached to it. These concern trade liberalisation with developing countries, retraining of US workers who lose their jobs due to globalisation and -…