Baucus, Hatch are 'Copyright Cowards' in Encouraging TPA, IP Protections Through Agreements, EFF Says.
Sens. Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, are "copyright cowards" for calling for strong intellectual property protections in trade agreements and being proponents of trade promotion authority, which "empowers the White House to unilaterally negotiate and sign trade agreements,"…
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the Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a blog post. The senators' offices did not respond to requests for comment. Trade promotion authority "places a time-limit on Congressional debates on trade treaties, prevents Congress from proposing amendments, and reduces Congress to an up-or-down, yes or no vote on the entire treaty," leading to a situation where "radical changes to digital policies are controlled almost entirely by the executive," the group said. The post applauded Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., for taking "a stand" against Michael Froman’s confirmation as the U.S. Trade Representative "due to lack of assurances from him during his nomination hearings" that he would "improve transparency in the negotiating process."