Trump gets win on trade deal with Canada and Mexico

Photo: Getty images

Trade ministers from the U.S., Canada and Mexico have met Sunday's deadline and reached a trade deal on NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement] the Trump administration announced.

The new pact, known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMC-eh) is yet another promise kept by Trump and it gives him more 'cred' to brag about on the campaign trail in the fall. Of course, Congress is going to have to pass it before it becomes law, and with the obstructionists on the left, it's going to be a fight.

Robert Lighthizer, the U.S. Trade Representative, said in August that our officials are planning to sign the agreement with their counterparts in Mexico and Canada, and they wanted it done by the end of November to satisfy Mexico's President Enrique Peña Nieto who will leave office on December 1st.

"It's a great win for the president and a validation for his strategy in the area of international trade," a senior Trump official said via phone with the media on Sunday.

There are changes in language on the revamped deal regarding governing dairy imports, dispute resolution between the countries, limits on tax-free online shopping, and limits on the U.S. threat of auto tariffs.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin "Baby Face" Trudeau said late Sunday night, "It's a good day for Canada," adding that he would save other comments for Monday [after he is told by his staff what to say].

A formal vote will be held in 2019.

Republicans will likely pay close attention to the final details about dispute settlement and intellectual property issues, while Democrats will likely be looking to file charges of sex abuse on white male Republicans while looking for stricter labor and environmental standards.

Both parties, along with large business and industry groups, are also looking into whether new provisions, [e.g., stricter automotive rules] will make business more difficult for domestic companies rather than easier.

Canada has agreed to eliminate a milk-ingredient pricing program that U.S. farmers said had dried up demand for their exports of the product. In exchange, Canada was able to retain the dispute settlement language. The Canucks have historically insisted on an international panel to decide whether the U.S. improperly uses duties as a commercial weapon.

Canada also went along with the U.S. agreeing to an "accommodation" to their auto exports for national security concerns, the official said. This will probably mean that Canada will agree to a side deal with us that would restrict its auto exports to a level well above the current volume of trade flowing south of the border.

If the Democrats win the House in November, they may do all they can to go along with the deal, even at the expense of the country, because it gives President Trump credit.

Leading congressional Democrats say they aren't convinced the new deal represents a significant shift from past trade policies that they've rarely supported, and that President Trump ought to be impeached because Hillary Clinton should be President.

If it was up to the left, the deal would elevate worker's rights above those of management and allow them to vote on all major decisions. Workers who are the most intersectional, such as transgender black progressive Muslim illegal alien women will have a vote that carries the most weight.

But that's another story.


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