Trump says US to quit TPP, lift energy restrictions

By Ovunc Kutlu

NEW YORK (AA) – The U.S. will abandon the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal and lift restrictions on the energy sector, President-elect Donald Trump said Monday as he laid out policy plans for his 100 days in the Oval Office.

"On trade, I'm going to issue a notification of intent to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership," Trump said of actions he plans on day one in office, and defined the deal as a "potential disaster" for the U.S.

Considered as a cornerstone of President Barack Obama's legacy, the TPP deal includes 12 Pacific-Rim countries composing approximately 40 percent of global economy.

Trump argued during his campaign that he would cancel or renegotiate trade deals the U.S. has with other countries.

"Instead, we will negotiate fair, bilateral trade deals that brings jobs and industry back on to American shores," he said in an official video his transition team posted on YouTube.

Another executive action Trump plans to take on day one is to loosen regulations on energy industry.

On the campaign trail, Trump promised to “unleash an energy revolution" and bring back coal mines.

"On energy, I will cancel job-killing restrictions on the production of American energy, including shale energy and clean coal, creating millions of high-paying jobs," he said.

American offshore and Arctic drilling have been heavily regulated by Obama due to environmental concerns; but Trump is likely to loosen those restrictions.

"On regulation, I will formulate a law, which says that for every one regulation, two old regulations must be eliminated," he said.

Trump's agenda of "putting America first" also includes producing steel, building cars, promoting innovation in the U.S. and, "creating wealth and jobs for American workers".

On national security, he said he would develop a comprehensive plan to protect the U.S.'s infrastructure from "cyberattacks and all other form of attacks".

The real-estate developer added that he would also investigate "all abuses of visa programs that undercut the American worker".

He also plans to impose a five-year ban on executive officials becoming lobbyists after they leave the administration, and a lifetime ban on executive officials lobbying on behalf of foreign governments.

"These are just a few steps that we will take from Washington and rebuild our middle-class," Trump said as he promised to provide updates in the coming days.