President Donald Trump Kills The TPP

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday withdrawing from negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a controversial deal with opposition and support crossing party lines, effectively putting an end to the agreement as it stands.

Republican lawmakers largely favored the deal President Obama had worked on, but congressional Democrats were much more suspicious of the agreement. Trump came out against the deal during his campaign that took aim at globalization and channeled anger against previous trade agreements such as NAFTA.

After a long primary battle with Sen. Bernie Sanders from Vermont, who always opposed the deal, Hillary Clinton pledged to end TPP during her campaign if elected, as then-candidate Trump did. Clinton's prior approval of the deal — she famously called it the "gold standard" of trade deals while it was being formulated — led many to question her sincerity, but in all likelihood TPP's fate was sealed no matter how the election ended.

During his inauguration speech, Trump cited his concerns about trade and his focus on putting "America First."

"From this day forward, it's going to be only America first, America first," he said. "Every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs will be made to benefit American workers and American families. We must protect our borders from the ravages of other countries making our products, stealing our companies and destroying our jobs."

Photo credit: Backbone Campaign