Two events coming up this Wednesday and both worth attending and participating in.
1. Sen Merkley town hall
2. Town hall on Free Trade Agreements, especially the TransPacific Partnership, aka NAFTA of the Pacific.

1. Sen Merkley town hall,Sen Merkley town hall Wed. Feb 22, 6 PM, at Roosevelt High School Cafeteria, 6941 N. Central St. He will be honoring the school for their recent achievements and then opening it up for your issues, questions and suggestions.

Two issues which Alliance for Democracy would suggest regard amending the US Constitution to end corporate personhood and the doctrine that money is speech. Sen. Merkley is a co-sponsor with Sen Udall of one proposed amendment but it does not address both issues plus requires that the amendment be ratified by the states in 7 years. There is not constitutional requirement for that time restriction and it should be eliminated. You might suggest that he look at the Move to Amend proposed amendment as a good example of what is required.

The other issue involves so-called "free trade" agreements and specifically, the TransPacific Partnership. Please see the next event for some details on what is needed right now regarding the TransPacific Partnership.

2. Oregon Fair Trade Campaign, of which Alliance for Democracy is a part, is holding a Portland event as part of a statewide tour to raise awareness of the TransPacific Partnership (TPP), the first "free trade" agreement which Pres. Obama has attempted to negotiate to date. The TPP will be larger than NAFTA, including possibly all of the Pacific Rim nations. While currently negotiations are with only six nations, Canada, Japan and Mexico have all indicated they want in and any other Pacific Rim country could join in the future.

Such a large agreement would seem to have generated a lot of attention but here in the United States almost nothing has been written. In part that is because all of the negotiating counties have promised not to spill the beans. They are all sworn to secrecy. But this we do know. Executives and representatives from over 600 multi-national corporations are at the table, reviewing and revising proposed text of the agreements, making sure that their interests are protected and promoted. But we, the 99%, are left out in the rain.

Oregon Sen Wyden is chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Trade. While he has generally voted in favor of "free trade" agreements, he agrees with the call for transparency in these negotiations. In response to letters from the Oregon Fair Trade Campaign, Sen. Wyden notes that the lack of transparency in the Trans-Pacific negotiations “is wrong and must change.” Please contact Senator Wyden and thank him for his support of transparency. Contact him at senate.gov/contact/.

Contact your senator and representative to release the text
Public Citizen has an email message to send to your congressperson and senator with the message that the US Trade Representative Ron Kirk should release the text of the proposals. Click http://www.citizen.org/Page.aspx?pid=5322.

So here is the event announcement. Unfortunately, it is the same time/date as the Sen Merkley event.
Community Forum on Corporate Globalization & the Trans-Pacific FTA

Learn about what the massive new Trans-Pacific Free Trade Agreement means for your community, and how you can help prevent this “NAFTA of the Pacific.”

Wednesday, Feb 22nd * 6:00pm
AFSCME Building
6025 E Burnside St
Portland, OR
What does Wall Street want from the new Pacific Rim trade deal?
* More Offshoring of Good-Paying Jobs to In the Race to the Bottom for Workers
* New Tools for Attacking Environmental and Consumer Safety Policies
* Further Deregulation of Banks and Insurance Companies
* Longer Patents that Restrict Access to Generic Medications

Join us for a community forum as we explore the local impacts of past Free Trade Agreements. We will hear from Greg Pallesen - Vice President of AWPPW Local 5 on trade related job loss, Kim Marks - a grassroots organizer who works within Rising Tide North America Collective and former board member of the Alliance for Sustainable Jobs and the Environment and BARK will speak to us about the impact of trade on labor and the environment, and Ted Gleichman - active within the Oregon Chapter of the Sierra Club, will talk about trade and climate change.

Also, hear more about what a massive new Trans-Pacific trade deal could mean for the economy, environment, workers across boarders and democracy itself. AND what we can do to prevent it!

For more info, or to get involved, please contact Elizabeth Swager with Oregon Fair Trade Campaign at elizabeth@oregonfairtrade.org or (503) 736-9777.