The benefits of the TPP are often confused with the benefits of trade agreements in general. Trade agreements are good for almost every American because they lead to lower prices on day-to-day goods and larger markets for the products and services that America is good at producing. Those who lose out are those involved in industries where the US does not have a comparative advantage and will thus be hurt by cheaper imports. In aggregate, the benefits to consumers and exporters far outweigh the loss to those less competitive industries.

The TPP is a trade agreement and thus subject to the same cost-benefit analysis of any other trade deal, but because the US is involved in the WTO and a number of other bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, there isn't a whole lot of meat left on the bone for the TPP to help us get at. That is, the benefits of the TPP alone aren't that great simply because we already have relatively free trade with TPP signatories. TPP will no doubt extend and firm-up our access to a few new markets, but everyday Americans shouldn't expect to see noticeably lower prices nor should very many Americans fear for their jobs just because of the TPP.