House passes renewal of worker training program, rounding out Obama's trade agenda

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published 25 June 2015

The House put the finishing touches on Obama's trade package Thursday, voting 286-138 to renew a retraining program for workers displaced by international trade. The program was initially attached to the "fast-track" negotiating authority that Congress approved on Wednesday, but the bill ended up being held hostage as Democrats tried, but ultimately failed, to block fast track. Democrats were concerned that fast track's passage, which could ultimately allow Obama to complete negotiations in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, would send U.S. jobs abroad. Supporters of the trade bill argue that such trade pacts are necessary to effectively participate in an increasingly global economy.

So while Wednesday's vote was largely spearheaded by Republicans, Thursday's retraining program vote saw much more support from Democrats than Republicans. Only six House Democrats voted against the job retraining program, compared to 132 Republicans that voted against it and 111 that voted for it.