Fast track Trans-Pacific trade deal: Our view

For nearly a decade, negotiators in Asia and the Americas have been struggling to piece together an agreement known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, which would reduce tariffs and other trade barriers.

The process has been an ordeal, held up by mind-numbing details and resistance from the usual places.

But, amazingly, the deal is looking as if it just might have a chance. The reason is plain to see: China is pushing a rival plan that would put itself at the center and exclude the Americas. At this week's international summit in Beijing, 21 nations agreed to give the Chinese plan a shot.

This ought to serve as a wake-up call to get the TPP done. The U.S., Canada and other countries in the Americas don't want to be excluded from fast-growing Asia. And a number of Asian countries want the U.S. around as a counterweight to China.

While the details of a TPP are not yet known, its basic thrust is. American companies would get a foothold in the booming economies of east and southeast Asia, and a lowering of the huge barriers to Japanese markets. In addition to Japan, some of the key countries involved are Vietnam, Malaysia and Australia.

The United States already counts 14.9 million jobs from trade with the TPP countries. That number is expected to grow if the pact is approved.

One key group likely to benefit is U.S. farmers. In recent years, they have become much more efficient than their counterparts abroad, and their products have become highly sought after. Among domestic manufacturing industries, petrochemicals are poised to do well.

The deal is also important as part of what President Obama calls a "pivot to Asia" at a time when it is becoming increasingly clear that Asia and the Pacific are becoming the new focal point of the world's wealth and power.

To get the trade deal done, the Obama administration needs to press other nations. More important, Congress needs to grant the administration trade promotion authority, also known as "fast track." That status says Congress can approve or reject a deal once it is completed, but can't amend it or filibuster it.

Fast track is necessary because a minority could use these delaying tactics to scuttle the deal, or keep the United States out of it. More immediately, it is needed because some nations — most notably Japan — are reluctant to make concessions until they conclude that the deal will get a fair shot in the U.S. Congress.

Much of the opposition to both fast track and the TPP comes from the usual labor groups, although one criticism of the TPP has merit. Language intended to thwart the pirating of movies, video games and such would threaten the flow of digital information. This needs to be fixed but is no reason to scuttle the deal.

It is time to push forward and link the nations on both sides of the Pacific in a trade deal beneficial to all. If that doesn't happen, the alternative is a deal not to America's liking.

USA TODAY's editorial opinions are decided by its Editorial Board, separate from the news staff. Most editorials are coupled with an opposing view — a unique USA TODAY feature.