[CTC] Ross says [change is coming]

Wed Jan 18 18:12:03 PST 2017

Commerce quizzed Ross on trade policy reform, substance and process.  Looking forward to Finance confirmation of Lighthizer, date t/b/a

MFD :: IBT

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IUST
Ross pledges to design 'model trade agreement,' calls for systematic re-examination of deals
January 18, 2017

President-elect Trump’s pick for Commerce secretary, Wilbur Ross, said on Wednesday that he wants to overhaul how the U.S. negotiates free trade agreements, urging a “systematic re-examination” process that would assess where a deal falls short and listing reciprocity and simultaneity of concessions as two of the principles he wants to include in his model.

“I think there are a number of these conceptual issues that have not been present in prior trade agreements but I would hope that, if confirmed, I can contribute toward designing kind of a model trade agreement where we would introduce certain principles that would have to be in any agreement,” Ross told the Senate Commerce Committee during his confirmation hearing on Jan. 18.

“I think that's a huge mistake to start out each time with kind of a blank page,” Ross continued, adding that doing so “makes it take longer, makes it harder to negotiate.”

“The best negotiating tool is to be able to tell someone 'I can't change this, this is official policy, you know it is -- we got it in 10 other deals, we're not going to give you anything different,'” he testified. “That's a much better position, in my opinion, than starting out with a blank slate.”

Ross repeatedly stressed the need for a re-examination process “after a period of time” -- without elaborating on when -- in which trade agreements can be assessed based on whether the deal has met key goals.

The Commerce secretary-designate listed as important concepts both reciprocity and simultaneity of concessions -- charging that previous U.S. trade deals have not been able to ensure trading partners live up to their obligations as negotiated.

“We have tended in prior trade agreements to make our concessions upfront and the other party makes their concession later,” Ross said. “But the problem is that later sometimes doesn't come, because when you have weak enforcement provisions and you've already made your concessions, it's a little bit hard to unscramble the egg.”

Commerce Committee member Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) expressed hope during the hearing that Congress can work with the incoming administration on “creating a new trade agenda” and decried “bad trade deals” she said have directly impacted her state.

Addressing the new administration's priorities for changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement, Baldwin asked Ross whether he could commit to eliminating the deal's procurement chapter. Baldwin noted that she has concerns “most notably with its prohibition of the Buy America program.”

Ross, in his response, would not commit to action on any one priority. “I think all aspects of NAFTA will be put on the table and that certainly is going to be a topic that would come up,” he said.

“But you don't have a deal on anything until you have a deal on everything. So exactly what would come in the final treaty or not I think that's premature to say,” Ross added. “But I'm certainly aware of the issue and certainly aware of the president-elect's view about Buy America.”

According to news reports from the same day, Ross has put forward a list of U.S. priorities for NAFTA talks in conversation with Canadian officials, which includes automotive rules of origin and the deal's dispute settlement mechanism<https://insidetrade.com/node/157220>.

During the hearing, Ross echoed Trump's stance that reopening NAFTA will be a “very early topic<https://insidetrade.com/node/157223>” for Trump's trade team.

Ross also noted that while there is nothing “inherently wrong” with multilateral agreements<https://insidetrade.com/node/157227>, he thinks bilateral deals are “easier and quicker” to negotiate.

Multiple members of the panel asked for clarification on Trump's threats to impose hefty tariffs on Mexico and other countries, but Ross was non-committal on the idea. According to Ross, those threats are a wake-up call for U.S. trading partners that “change is coming.”

“I think [Trump] has done a wonderful job pre-conditioning the other countries with whom we're renegotiating that change is coming,” Ross told the panel. “The peso didn't go down 35 percent on accident; even the Canadian dollar has gotten somewhat weaker -- also not an accident.”

“So I think he has done some of the work already that we need to do in order to get better trade deals. Because when you start out with the other party understanding that he or she is going to have to make concessions, that's a pretty good background for any negotiation to begin with. So I'm very grateful that he's made this task a little bit easier by alerting everybody that change is coming,” Ross added.

Pressed by Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) on whether he considers the imposition of tariffs the best avenue to grow the U.S. economy -- Sullivan said such a move “would seem to me about as anti-growth as possible” -- Ross instead deferred to his commitment to boost exports.

“I think that the pro-growth thing is stimulating exports much more than just not curtailing imports,” he said. “But countervailing duties and punishment to people for dumping is essential, because there are inappropriate and illegal trade practices being performed, and if you don't really punish them, you're never going to modify their behavior. So there's certainly a role for it there.”

Committee Chairman John Thune (R-SD), who told reporters after the hearing that Trump's campaign rhetoric on trade had initially worried him, touted Ross's knowledge on “a whole lot of issues” and his commitment to “robust enforcement of existing trade agreements."

“I think there are a lot of folks who are spooked when they hear the rhetoric surrounding 35 percent tariffs and that sort of thing and I think you’ve given good insights into how that might be interpreted today,” Thune told Ross during the hearing.

Thune told reporters after the hearing that he “didn't take away from it at all that he wasn't very pro export and pro trade. I mean he made that abundantly clear that he thinks that in order for the economy to grow we gotta export.”

“I don't think there's anything he said today that anybody would take much of an issue with. Because I think he wants to re-examine but I think he also said that he was very open to keeping his options open there,” Thune added.

Commerce Committee ranking member Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) said in his opening remarks that he would like a better understanding of the dynamics of who will be in charge of setting trade policy in the new administration, and how Ross would describe his role in a process that will also involve the U.S. trade representative, among others.

“As the president-elect has indicated, [Trump] is going to look to you to help lead the administration's trade agenda,” Nelson said in his prepared remarks. “That's a departure from past Commerce secretaries and the role that they played, which was much smaller in setting U.S. trade policy.”

Thune, when asked after the hearing whether that issue has been sufficiently addressed for him, said he had initially planned to ask Ross about it, but added that the confirmation hearing was not the appropriate setting for that level of detail -- and said the Trump administration itself is likely in the process of figuring out answers to such questions.

“It was in my questions to ask him that questions. I felt like that was sort of inside baseball, down in the weeds question on how the bureaucracy is going to function, and I was kind of more interested today in getting his perspective generally on some of the trade issues,” Thune said.

“But I do think just based on what I heard today that he's going to be a very strong voice in the cabinet and in the administration on trade issues. Now how they work that with USTR and who has the ear of the administration, that's an issue that I think probably remains to be seen as the administration starts to take shape,” the chairman added.

He noted that “a lot of” members on his committee have industries in their states with jobs depending on or tied to trade, and said he thinks “there's going to be a lot of oversight by this committee on trade issues.”

Jurisdiction over trade lies with the Senate Finance Committee, and some sources have wondered how the power triangle will play out in the new administration. The panel's chairman, Orrin Hatch (R-UT), however, has repeatedly downplayed the implications for his committee and its relationship with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

Thune said he wants to move Ross's nomination “as quickly as possible,” and a committee aide added that the panel could put him on the agenda for Jan. 24. Thune also said he would be “surprised if there were 'no' votes,” but added, “you never know; you've got some people who tend to vote 'no' on most things.” -- Jenny Leonard (jleonard at iwpnews.com<mailto:jleonard at iwpnews.com>)

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From: CTCField [ctcfield-bounces at lists.citizenstrade.org] on behalf of Arthur Stamoulis [arthur at citizenstrade.org]
Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2017 11:55 AM
To: CTC Field Field
Subject: [CTC] Ross says renegotiating NAFTA will be first trade priority

Politico Pro
Ross says renegotiating NAFTA will be first trade priority

By Doug Palmer<https://www.politicopro.com/staff/doug-palmer>

Commerce Secretary-designate Wilbur Ross said today the Trump administration would focus first on renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement before looking around the world for new trade agreements.

"We ought to solidify relationships in the best way we can in our own territory before we go off to other jurisdictions," Ross said at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on his nomination. "So I think that should be, and hopefully will be if I'm confirmed, a very, very early topic in this administration."

Ross' remarks seemed to downplay the prospect of the Trump administration moving quickly to negotiate a bilateral free trade agreement with the United Kingdom, as Trump recently said he planned to do despite the view of many experts that negotiations with London can't formally begin until the U.K. redefines its relationship with the European Union, which it has voted to leave.

The billionaire businessman also said China would be a primary focus of the incoming administration, consistent with remarks that Trump made during the campaign.

"China is the most protectionist country of very large countries. They have both very high tariff barriers and very high non-tariff trade barriers," Ross said. "They talk much more about free trade than they actually practice. We would like to levelize that playing field and bring the realities a bit closer to the rhetoric."

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