WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's drive for "fast-track" trade negotiating authority got a new boost on Wednesday when House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi announced she will support a companion bill providing aid to American workers hurt by trade deals.
"I will support its passage because it can open the door to a full debate" on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal Obama is negotiating with 11 other Pacific Rim nations, Pelosi said in a letter to her Democratic colleagues.
A House vote on the worker retraining program could come on Thursday and Obama has demanded both this bill and the fast-track legislation.