Wyden (D-Ore) revolts over secrecy regarding latest free-trade negotiations

[AnotherMcIntosh]

22. Actually, his words at the end of his statement speak for themselves:

My intent is to do everything I can to see that this legislation is advanced quickly and becomes law, so that elected Members of Congress can do what the Constitution requires and what their constituents expect.

I yield the floor.

http://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/blog/post/iycmi-wyden-statement-introducing-congressional-oversight-over-trade-negotiations-act

The words "so that elected Members of Congress can do what the Constitution requires and what their constituents expect" are exactly the right words that a responsible Senator should say when representing his constituants and when finding it necessary to introduce legislation so that he and others can have access to the information that the "A team" lobbyists already have.

If you are interpreting his words "My intent is to do everything I can to see that this legislation is advanced quickly and becomes law," without his qualifying words that follow in the same sentence, as meaning that he is doing the opposite of making a pro-labor stand and that he is unconditionally supporting the pending free-trade agreement regardless of what it provides, then you are obviously interpreting the phrase out of context. And you are reading it too narrowly.

You would have more support for an interpretation that he is anti-labor if he had a history of being anti-labor. He doesn't. That is one reason why many of his pro-labor constituents vote for him.