In One Sentence

• Lawmakers called on the Biden administration to boost transparency in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) via consultation involving both Congress and outside stakeholders.
• Some IPEF members called for transition periods for member countries to meet the high commitment standards at the IPEF ministerial meeting in late July.
• More than 100 civil society and labor groups have also called for transparency in the IPEF talks.
• Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the U.S.-Japan Economic Policy Consultative Committee will complement the IPEF.

Mark the Essentials

• Nine lawmakers sent a letter to the top officials in charge of trade policy in the Biden administration to address concerns of the executive branch bypassing the legislative branch on trade agreements and called the announcement of IPEF “abrupt.”
• During the virtual ministerial meeting of the 14 IPEF members, Malaysia and multiple other Asian countries sought to establish flexibilities within the IPEF pillars; particularly over transition periods.
• Advocates calling for greater transparency in IPEF have suggested that the Biden administration replace corporate input with an “on-the-record public process” to avoid the problems encountered during the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations. 
• Secretary Blinken joined Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and their respective Japanese counterparts at an inaugural “Economic 2+2” meeting where they raised concerns over China, promised cooperation to address barriers on cross-border data flows, and backed joint efforts on export controls for critical technologies and supply chain resilience.

Keeping an Eye On…

• For almost two decades now, U.S. Congressmen and women have shouted themselves hoarse about the Executive Branch’s lack of consultation with Congress at the time of negotiating trade agreements. After all, the U.S. Constitution does vest Congress with the authority to regulate foreign commerce, as they correctly argue. More often than not, the loudest voices have emerged from the Democratic side; particularly from protectionist-minded Democrats hoping to torpedo an ongoing trade negotiation by pointing to a supposedly perfidious corporate giveaway or suchlike that was under wraps during the course of a negotiation. How appropriate it is, then, that the shoe is on the other foot now as a protectionist-minded U.S. Trade Representative from the Democratic Party has to answer calls from Congress to be more transparent on the state of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) consultations. This is a tough ask for USTR Tai for two reasons. IPEF is designed as a trade executive agreement (TEA) that skirts meaningful congressional oversight and, crucially, congressional ratification. The recent spate of TEA’s, such as the rules of origin annex in the U.S.-Japan trade agreement, is itself a matter of questionable constitutionality. More embarrassingly, the demand for transparency from the Hill will blow open the specious quality of IPEF’s substantive content under negotiation. With no market access on tap, no third-party enforceability, inclusivity prioritized over ambition, and an a la carte approach to participation in hand-picked pillars, the IPEF negotiations resemble the ASEAN-led regional trade agreements in Asia that Washington has invariably derided. The 14 countries constituting the current membership of IPEF are expected to launch the negotiation phase of the proposed framework in early-September. For reasons deriving from the framework’s substantive hollowness (except perhaps for its supply chain and digital trade commitments), it is understandable that the Biden administration would prefer to conduct negotiations under a veil of relative secrecy. Whether Congress is prepared to accept this remains to be seen. They are probably not. And the extent of its subsequent pushback remains to be seen.

Expanded Reading

• Biden Administration Hosts the First Indo-Pacific Economic Framework Ministerial: Updates, Outlook, and Remaining Questions, Covington, August 4, 2022
• DeLauro, Warren Call for Better Engagement with Congress, Public on Proposed Indo-Pacific and Americas Trade Deals, No TPP 2.0, United States Representative Rosa DeLauro, August 2, 2022
• GOP senators use McKalip hearing to slam Biden trade agenda, Agri-Pulse, July 28, 2022 [Paywall] 
• Hearing to Consider the Nomination of Douglas J. McKalip, of the District of Columbia, to be Chief Agricultural Negotiator, Office of the United States Trade Representative, with the Rank of Ambassador, United States Senate Committee on Finance, July 28, 2022
• U.S. to host first IPEF ministerial meeting, Politico, July 25, 2022