Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown defended Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton against trade critics Tuesday ahead of his state’s crucial primary.
“She understands better than any of the other candidates in either party what to do with the different trade (policies),” he said on CNN’s “New Day.”
He added that while the former secretary of state joins Democratic rival Bernie Sanders in opposing the Trans-Pacific Partnership, she is the best presidential candidate to negotiate trade deals benefiting American workers.
“Hillary actually has a plan. I’ve actually worked with her on that to put people back to work in the Mahoning Valley and all across the state,” said Brown, who has endorsed Clinton in the Democratic race.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership is one of the biggest free trade deals in history, involving countries making up 40% of the global economy. It also cuts across partisan lines: While the deal is championed by the Obama administration, many congressional Democrats oppose it while many Republicans support it.
But not, however, Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump. He’s predicting that could lead Democratic voters to support him in states like Ohio because they believe the deal will hurt the economy.
“A number of people crossover in election times like this,” Brown said, acknowledging the potential for some defections from his party. “I think that people are understandably upset, but I know that I trust Hillary Clinton to have a real manufacturing plan — the only person in this race that does, on either side, that will keep this growth going.”
And Trump has provided no detailed solutions about how he will help American workers, Brown claimed.
“He doesn’t ever go any deeper on what he would actually do than … oppose trade deals and negotiate a better one,” Brown said. “I see something different in Hillary Clinton. She wants a trade prosecutor. She’s going after currency. She’s going to stand strong on keeping China designated as a non-market economy.”