[CTC] Business, farm groups hit the Hill as NAFTA Round 4 begins

Wed Oct 11 15:21:59 PDT 2017

https://www.politicopro.com/trade/story/2017/10/business-farm-groups-hit-the-hill-as-nafta-round-4-begins-163233 <https://www.politicopro.com/trade/story/2017/10/business-farm-groups-hit-the-hill-as-nafta-round-4-begins-163233>

Business, farm groups hit the Hill as NAFTA Round 4 begins
By JOHN LAUINGER <https://www.politicopro.com/staff/john-lauinger>

10/11/2017 04:24 PM EDT
In a sign of the increased stakes in the NAFTA talks, business and agricultural groups mounted a lobbying push on Capitol Hill on Wednesday targeting more than 250 House members. Separately, the Senate's top Democrat renewed his call for open public meetings on the progress of the discussions.

The lobbying effort, led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, was expected to be made by more than 100 representatives of various groups — an "army," as Chamber President and CEO Thomas Donohue phrased it — assembled to end the "roller-coaster ride" of uncertainty and to ensure that a reworked pact meets the needs of commerce in the 21st century market.

Donohue previewed the effort in a speech <https://www.uschamber.com/speech/preserving-north-american-growth-jobs-and-competitiveness> in Mexico on Tuesday, noting that U.S. business groups are concerned over a host of Trump administration proposals that would be unacceptable to many industries. The contentious items include a five-year sunset review clause and a proposal the administration was expected to make <https://www.politicopro.com/trade/story/2017/10/trump-eyeing-nafta-proposal-to-roll-back-protections-for-foreign-investors-163145> that would transform NAFTA's investor-state dispute settlement process into a voluntary arrangement for governments.

"There are sober-minded decision-makers within the administration, and we are urging them to step up and be heard," Donohue said on the eve of the Round 4 talks. "Some of the most powerful members of Congress also wield tremendous influence on trade issues. We are encouraging them to stay strong under pressure and to steel their resolve for what could be a big a fight."

The Chamber drafted support <https://www.politicopro.com/trade/story/2017/10/grass-roots-campaign-launched-to-counter-threat-to-ag-trade-163190> for the lobbying effort from the Business Roundtable, the National Association of Manufacturers, the National Foreign Trade Council, the Coalition of Services Industries, the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Pork Producers Council.

A lobbyist involved in the effort said groups were fearful that President Donald Trump could withdraw from the deal if talks go south, and were asking House members to pressure the administration against such a course.

As the latest round kicked off Wednesday in Arlington, Va., House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady <https://cd.politicopro.com/member/51295> (R-Texas) delivered a message <https://www.politicopro.com/agriculture/story/2017/10/brady-new-nafta-pact-must-boost-north-american-competitiveness-163236> that seemed to align with the position of business and farm groups by calling on U.S. negotiators to produce a draft deal that would preserve the competitiveness of the North American trading bloc.

Brady spoke alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose appearance on Capitol Hill at the outset of what could be a defining round in the renegotiation was not without strategic significance and served as a prelude to an afternoon meeting with Trump.

The president himself demurred Wednesday when it came to predicting the outcome of the talks.

"It's possible we won't be able to make a deal, and it's possible that we will," Trump said. He also raised the possibility of pursuing <https://www.politicopro.com/agriculture/whiteboard/2017/10/trump-open-to-breaking-up-nafta-into-bilateral-deals-094158> a trade deal just with Canada if the three-party NAFTA talks involving both Ottawa and Mexico fall apart.

But Trump also added that "we have the chance to do something very creative that's good for Canada, Mexico and the United States."

On the other side of Capitol Hill, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer <https://cd.politicopro.com/member/51231> chose Twitter, Trump's favorite social media forum, to urge the administration to hold town hall meetings in 10 states to garner suggestions on priorities in trade with Canada and Mexico.

"When it comes to NAFTA, Trump Admin should carefully listen to the public & stakeholders to negotiate the best outcome for American workers," the New York Democrat tweeted <https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/918082391771631618> this morning, adding <https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/918082920518123521>: "US workers deserve an open, transparent NAFTA negotiation, not a backroom deal."

The town hall meetings were one of many proposals contained in Senate Democrats' trade platform <https://democrats.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/A-Better-Deal-on-Trade-and-Jobs-FINAL.pdf>, released this summer. That blueprint, which also called for the creation of an independent trade prosecutor to go after cheating by U.S. trading partners, says the public forums should be held before a draft NAFTA 2.0 agreement is finalized. It also urged the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to publish all NAFTA-related meetings with interested parties.

Other groups have also urged greater transparency in the administration's approach to the NAFTA renegotiation. Late last month, John Murphy, the Chamber of Commerce's senior vice president for international affairs, said <https://www.politicopro.com/trade/whiteboard/2017/09/chamber-blasts-ustrs-nafta-consultations-as-inadequate-093280> USTR has done an "inadequate" job of ensuring that the business community has been apprised of developments during the NAFTA talks.

"Such an approach is undermining business support, which will ultimately be needed to secure final passage on any agreement put before the Congress,” Murphy said.

A representative from USTR could not be reached for comment on Schumer's tweets. But the office had pushed back in response to Murphy's comments, saying the agency "strictly adheres to the TPA process, which includes consultation with interagency officials, Congress, and cleared private sector advisers."

"Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect," USTR spokeswoman Emily Davis added.

Last week, the AFL-CIO also raised concerns over transparency, faulting <https://www.politicopro.com/trade/story/2017/10/afl-cio-gives-trump-an-f-for-openness-of-nafta-talks-163033> the administration for "negotiating behind closed doors" — an accusation that was also leveled against the Obama administration during the Trans-Pacific Partnership talks. Past administrations have defended the need for confidentiality in trade talks, saying that negotiators shouldn't be hamstrung by having every proposal debated in the public spotlight.

Doug Palmer contributed to this report.

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