How to Improve NAFTA
How to Improve NAFTA
Modernizing the trade deal would make the United States more—not less—competitive globally, write Mack McLarty and Penny Pritzker in the Los Angeles Times.
A few days after marking its first 100 days in office, the Trump administration closed in on another milestone: $300 billion. That’s the total value of goods that crossed U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico between Inauguration Day and April 29.
President Trump was presented with a similar data point before he tacked away from a decision to “terminate” the North American Free Trade Agreement. According to the Washington Post, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross showed the president a map indicating areas of the United States that would be harmed by the collapse of NAFTA, including many that are home to the president’s core supporters. Canada is the number one destination for U.S. exports. Trade with Mexico supports 6 million American jobs, from corn farmers in Iowa to auto workers in South Carolina. With integrated manufacturing, it’s more accurate to speak of a North American auto industry than a strictly American one.
After the briefing, and phone calls with the leaders of Mexico and Canada, Trump announced that he’d defer termination in favor of renegotiation. This is encouraging news....
