In the 2016 Presidential election, then-candidate Donald Trump often blasted NAFTA, saying that a new deal needed to be made.
Today, in Argentina, President Donald Trump, Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have signed that exact new trade deal, called the U.S. Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA).
At the start of the signing, President Trump commented that “This has been a battle, and battles sometimes make great friendships.”
Trudea commented that the new deal “lifts the risk of serious economic uncertainty that lingers throughout a trade renegotiation process — uncertainty that would have only gotten worse and more damaging if we had not reached a new NAFTA."
And, calling the environmental and labor provisions “too weak,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer expressed that he is “most interested in ensuring that any final agreement protects our dairy farmers and that there is real enforcement of new and tough labor provisions. The deal must also raise wages and should recognize that climate change is a grave threat to our countries’ economies and the health and safety of our citizens.”
Noting that Democrats will be pushing for tougher environmental and labor provisions, Schumer commented that “Thankfully, the Congress has a role in crafting ‘implementing legislation’ to make sure the deal benefits and protects middle-class families and working people, and isn’t simply a rebranding of the same old policies that hurt our economy and workers for years.”
However, Republican Orrin Hatch, Senate Finance Committee Chairman, added that “In the coming months, Congress will have the opportunity to debate the details of USMCA and consider how it will impact workers and job creators in this country. I encourage my colleagues to take the time to carefully review the agreement and engage in a meaningful dialogue with the administration as intended by Trade Promotion Authority.”
