WASHINGTON - In a ceremony today in New Zealand, the United States signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership and formally enabled the Obama Administration to begin the process of writing legislation for Congress to approve the pact later this year. The American Soybean Association (ASA) is a leading supporter of the TPP agreement, which represents more than a third of the world's gross domestic product, and both emerging and major soybean export markets along the Pacific Rim. ASA President Richard Wilkins, a farmer from Greenwood, Del., reiterated the association's support and encouraged Congress to press through election-year rhetoric and get to work on the TPP in 2016.  "With valuable, established markets alongside promising emerging markets, the 11 partner nations within the TPP combine to make this one of our most significant policy priorities right now. We are absolutely committed to the full-court press that we'll need to move it across the finish line this year. We know that the election makes everything harder, but this is important enough that we're ready to do whatever it takes. What we need from Congress is a commitment to move beyond the shortsighted focus on November and see what this agreement means for our economy, both in rural communities and nationwide. It means increased demand at home and abroad, which drives exports, which support jobs and economic activity all across the country. Election year or not, the TPP is a no-brainer."