I mean, I understand your perspective, but it's kinda bizarre. The line about gridlock making free trade deals impossible seems to be the standard response to

I mean, I understand your perspective, but it's kinda bizarre. The line about gridlock making free trade deals impossible seems to be the standard response to every criticism of the incredibly secretive negotiation process, but it never gets followed to the logical conclusion. What is the point of having a democracy if the very principle of "rule by the people" gets subverted every time it presents an inconvenience? Perhaps having a democratic open process is worth missing out on one of these deals.