Training Workers for the New Economy

Better Way to Help U.S. Victims of Free Trade (Ronald J. Daniels & Michael Trebilcock) from Bloomberg View

"The most successful programs, such as in Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, tend to have a number of similar traits: They aggressively press workers into training programs, in some circumstances making it mandatory in order to receive other benefits. They engineer flexible opportunities with industry for workers including apprenticeships and short-term training opportunities. And they subsidize part-time opportunities for workers, to keep them in the workforce and their skills sharp while they look for new opportunities."

The Grim Politics of the TPP

Myths and Realities of the Trans-Pacific Partnership from the National Interest
"One problem regarding the politics of free trade accords is that there are always winners and losers, even if the result is a net gain for a nation’s economy. The losers generally know who they are and mobilize in opposition, but who the winners will be tends to be less clear."
The politics of the TPP are tough.  In my view, the TPP is much more about the US retaining global economic advantages for the foreseeable future ... or surrendering really soon those advantages to the trade pact the Chinese were trying to organize around the Pacific rim, one that disadvantaged the US BIG TIME!  The US was facing a take-it-or-leave-it circumstance as the Chinese were closing in on securing their deal with most of the major countries in the Pacific, excluding the US.  The TPP has all the same players sans the Chinese.  Is the TPP a bad deal for US workers? Probably.  But it's nothing compared to how bad the Chinese deal would have been for US workers. -- Nuggetsman

The Bigger Strategic Picture with TPP

America's Grand Strategy to Contain China: The Trans-Pacific Partnership? from the National Interest
"There is a strategic dimension to the American push to conclude the TPP, but it's not about containing China. Rather, the TPP is part of the Obama Administration's broader Rebalance strategy to update and reinforce the liberal international order in the Asia-Pacific."