Despite the opinion of the Committee on International Trade model estimation that the Trump administration’s replacement of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) would raise U.S. GDP by $68.2 billion and create 176,000 new jobs, convincing Congress to adopt it was not basic.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer did apparently traveled to Capitol Hill weekly, giving up some of his other work related to trade discussions with China, in an attempt to persuade Democrats in Congress to support the U.S.-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade proposal and forward it to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) so she can bring the issue to the fore.
However, Democrats are balking for reasons that have likely already been discussed in USMCA and are certainly a significant improvement over NAFTA. Pelosi has issued statements that the agreement must be “surgically” reopened to satisfy Democrats.
This restraint led Washington Post Office columnist and former Republican speechwriter Marc Thiessen suggested in: Thursday columnfollowing a podcast interview with Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) that because USMCA is a huge improvement over NAFTA, Trump should make Democrats own the latter if they don’t vote for the former.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) has a better idea: Trump should tell Democrats they will own NAFTA if they oppose his agreement to replace it. The message should be: “If you’re a Democrat, you’re basically voting for NAFTA if you’re voting for it on USMCA,” Portman explained in an interview on the American Enterprise Institute’s new podcast “What The Hell Is Going On,” which I co-host. If USMCA fails, he says, “it goes back to the status quo of NAFTA.”
Besides, Portman argues, there is no good reason for Democrats to oppose USMCA because “it is a much better deal for Democrats than NAFTA. … This is all they asked for in terms of improving the NAFTA agreements.”
Thiessen outlines the numerous ways USMCA improves NAFTA, from environmental standards (there are none in NAFTA) to labor protections (secret ballot and minimum wage for Mexican workers).
Portman says Trump should tell Democrats: “Wait a minute, this is everything you said you wanted.”
Vice President Mike Pence, who recently hosted a CEO roundtable at the White House that invited representatives from Fortune 100 mid-sized and tiny businesses to discuss their views on the new trade deal, wrote his own article touting the benefits of the new trade pact and encouraging Congress to adopt the agreement.
Pence recalled something that at least one attendee at the White House event found very encouraging.
“USMCA will eliminate the NAFTA loophole that allows foreign auto companies to buy auto parts from China or Europe, install them in vehicles in Mexico, and then sell those vehicles duty-free in the United States,” the vice president noted.
Nicole Wolter, who participated in the Pence CEO Roundtable at USMCA, is president and CEO of HM Manufacturing, a custom equipment manufacturing company in Wauconda, Illinois, with about 20 employees. Wolter, a member of the Job Creators Network, said the opportunity to learn more about the trade deal directly from the administration made her hopeful, both about her own business prospects and others she considers crucial to the U.S. economy.
“What I like most about this agreement is that it guarantees manufacturers can sell their products to Canada and Mexico duty-free,” Wolter said. “And it levels the playing field by expanding access to American manufacturing, increasing fair competition and strengthening rules that protect ideas and inventions.”
Wolter also said she learned more about other industries, the struggles they face and how USMCA will begin to address these issues.
“This agreement is particularly beneficial for farmers,” Wolter said. “It looks like three farmers a day are going bankrupt. It’s disastrous. So we have to accept it so that we can continue.”
Mexico had already ratified the agreement and encouraged it to facilitate resolve the border crisis when Trump indicated he might withdraw from the agreement if the situation for migrant caravans on the southern border did not improve.
The agreement requires ratification by all three countries. It is expected to be easily adopted in Canada, with lawmakers expecting to adopt the agreement after September.
