President Donald Trump says “I don’t want to go back into” the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
In a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Trump told reporters “the media has not covered the TPP correctly.” President Trump however did say that “if they offered us a deal that I can’t refuse, on behalf of the United States, I would do it,” according to the Hagstrom Report. The comments follow a previous statement by the President on Twitter that he would be interested in re-joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, and comments made during a White House meeting last week, where farm-state senators say Trump told them his administration would explore rejoining the trade agreement.
Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska, who attended the meeting and confirmed the comments, added that rejoining TPP is the “best thing” the U.S. can do to “push back” against China.
As for trade with Japan, Trump said he would prefer “a bilateral deal, a deal directly with Japan.”
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.