The Senate voted 60 to 37 on Tuesday advancing US President Barack Obama’s Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation, which will now go up for a vote in Congress.
The Senate cloture vote allows up to 30 hours of debate before the final Senate vote on TPA takes place. The US House of Representatives will likely to vote on the legislation as early as Friday, according to media reports.
Last week, the House voted on a procedural rule to send a new fast-track trade promotion authority back to the Senate in a renewed attempt to give Obama the authority to conclude major international free-trade agreements.
The TPA fast-track authority would enable President Obama to conclude the ongoing free-trade agreements with US trade partners in the Trans-Atlantic and Trans-Pacific. The US Congress would be relegated to a vote for or against the trade agreements after they are concluded.
