Severely restricting Congressional access to the TPP is tantamount to no real access at all.

[cali]

It is fucked up. It reflects the secrecy of this not-even-close-to being-transparent administration. It is profoundly undemocratic. Under these circumstances, you can't blame congresscritters for not reading those thousands of pages. But it sure does demonstrate the cynicism of the administration. The claim from the President that the Congress has access to the TPP is essentially a lie. It is not meaningful access- and anyone denying that fact, is full of it.

<snip>

"I bet that none of my colleagues have read the entire document. I would bet that most of them haven't even spent a couple hours looking at it," said Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who has acknowledged he has yet to read every single page of the trade agreement.

Because, as Brown explained, even if a member of Congress were to hunker down and pore over a draft trade agreement hundreds of pages long, filled with technical jargon and confusing cross-references –- what good would it do? Just sitting down and reading the agreement isn't going to make its content sink in.

For any senator who wants to study the draft TPP language, it has been made available in the basement of the Capitol, inside a secured, soundproof room. There, lawmakers surrender their cellphones and other mobile devices and sit under the watchful gaze of an official from the U.S. Trade Representative's office while they peruse the pages. Any notes taken inside the room must be left in the room.

Only aides with high-level security clearances can accompany lawmakers. Members of Congress can't ask outside industry experts or lawyers to analyze the language. They can't talk to the public about what they read. And Brown says there's no computer inside the secret room to look something up when there's confusion. You just consult the USTR official.

"There is more access in most cases to CIA and Defense Department and Iran sanctions documents — better access to congressional staff and others — than for this trade agreement," said Brown.

<snip>
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/05/14/406675625/a-trade-deal-read-in-secret-by-only-few-or-maybe-none

[think]

1. America has really lost it's way....

[newfie11]

2. Apparently there's not a damn thing we the people can do about it

Vote the bums out? HA then you find out the ones you like and voted in lied. After being elected they do what benefits them.
No there are a very few with standards but their getting fewer and fewer.
Getting rid of Citizens United would be a Huge start but I'm loosing hope.