McConnell warns Obama against tobacco carve-out in trade deal

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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is warning U.S. officials negotiating a massive trans-Pacific trade agreement for President Obama not to target tobacco growers in a final deal.

McConnell said singling out the tobacco industry would set a dangerous precedent for future trade deals, in a letter to Obama’s top trade representative.

The missive from McConnell suggests that congressional approval for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a deal with 11 other countries that is the central goal of Obama’s trade policy, could be jeopardized by the tobacco language.

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