U.S. Senator Hatch: fast-track trade bill 'may be dead'

Pulse Staff 17:04 - 12 May 2015

WASHINGTON, May 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch said on Tuesday that a bill to give President Barack Obama "fast-track" authority to negotiate trade deals "may be dead" after a leading pro-trade Democrat said he would not support it.

Hatch, a Republican, said he did not know what would happen next if a scheduled procedural vote on the bill failed. Senator Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the finance panel, said on Tuesday he would vote no, a major blow to supporters of the trade bill. (Reporting by Richard Cowan; Writing by Emily Stephenson; Editing by Bill Trott)