President Obama went to Nike headquarters to draw attention to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Even though the deal has support from Republicans, many Democrats say the bill is unfair to American workers.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a trade accord between 12 Pacific countries and the United States. Obama said the deal would help American workers. Nike pledged to add 10,000 jobs over the next 10 years if the deal passes.

“I’ve run my last election, and the only reason I do something is because I think it’s good for the American workers and the American people and the American economy,” said Obama.

“The American jobs Nike claims it aims to create are a drop in the bucket compared to the massive number of jobs that would be lost nationwide if the TPP is enacted because it gives companies incentives to offshore,” said Lori Wallach, a Nike executive.

“Every T crossed, every I dotted. Everybody’s going to be able to see exactly what’s in it. There’s nothing fast track about this. This is—this is ‘very deliberate track,’ which will be fully subject to scrutiny,” said Obama. He said it was “the most progressive trade deal in history.”

“It moves us in the right direction,” Obama said. “And if Vietnam or any of the other countries in this trade agreement don’t meet these requirements, they’ll face meaningful consequences.”

“There have been a bunch of critics about trade deals generally and the Trans-Pacific Partnership,” added Obama in his speech before 2,000 Nike workers. “And what’s interesting is typically they’re my friends coming from my party. And they’re my fellow travelers on minimum wage and on job training and on clean energy and on every progressive issue, they’re right there with me. And then on this, they’re like whupping on me.”

Critics of the deal include Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren. In an open letter, she criticized the deal, saying it would only benefit multinational corporations.

“Members of Congress should be able to discuss the agreement with our constituents and to participate in a robust public debate, instead of being muzzled by classification rules,” wrote Warren.

“Your Administration has deemed the draft text of the agreement classified and kept it hidden from public view, thereby making it a secret deal,”  continued the letter. “It is currently illegal for the press, experts, advocates, or the general public to review the text of this agreement.

“And while you noted that Members of Congress may ‘walk over … and read the text of the agreement’ — as we have done — you neglected to mention that we are prohibited by law from discussing the specifics of that text in public,” noted Warren’s letter.

Obama responded to criticism the deal would be like NAFTA. The North American Free Trade Agreement between Canada, the United States, and Mexico caused many American companies to send jobs to Mexican workers for lower wages.

Obama responded to criticism from liberal Democrats like Warren that believe the Trans-Pacific Partnership would send American jobs overseas.

“When you ask folks specifically, ‘What do you oppose about this trade deal?’ they just say, ‘Nafta,’  said Obama. “Nafta was passed 20 years ago. That was a different agreement. And in fact this agreement fixes some of what was wrong with Nafta by making labor and environmental provisions actually enforceable. I was just getting out of law school when Nafta got passed.”

The fact is “some folks are just opposed to trade deals out of principle, a reflexive principle. And what I tell them is, ‘You know what? If you’re opposed to these smart, progressive trade deals, then that means you must be satisfied with the status quo,’  added Obama. ”