[CTC] 'NAFTA without Canada' Deal Incomplete

[Hillary Haden]

http://www.thestand.org/2018/08/trumps-nafta-sans-canada-deal-incomplete/

'NAFTA without Canada' Deal Incomplete

Trump promised trade deals that are good for U.S. workers. This one isn’t —
yet.

*By Hillary Haden*

(Aug. 28, 2018) — News broke Monday morning that President Trump had
finally completed the trade agreement he promised the American people. In a
press conference from the Oval Office, Trump announced that the United
States and Mexico were going to sign a trade agreement together, and Canada
could join later.

Frustration around the announcement was swift — from the Institute and
Agriculture and Trade Policy calling it “misleading” and a “transparent
bullying tactic” aimed at getting Canada to give in to U.S. demands, to the
AFL-CIO calling the deal
<https://aflcio.org/press/releases/nafta-negotiations-track-not-done> “not
done.”

Notably, both the incoming and outgoing Mexican administrations and a
number of U.S. lawmakers — both Republican and Democrat – called for the
agreement to be trilateral, applying to all countries that were signatory
to the North American Free Trade Agreement. Rep. Sander Levin (D-Mich.)
raised a critical issue for labor, that “it remains highly unclear whether
there will be assured, substantial change in the status quo” on the issue
of labor rights and enforcement in Mexico.

The announcement left a number of items unaddressed. Canada and Mexico have
insisted through the negotiating process that they needed a deal with all
three countries. During Monday’s press conference, Mexico President Peña
Nieto repeatedly added to Trump’s commentary that it was important for his
country that Canada be included moving forward. It remains unclear whether
Mexico would sign this agreement bilaterally if Canada does not agree to
what’s been negotiated.

Additionally, the announcement contained very few details aside from Trump
stating how great, tremendous, and incredible his new agreement with Mexico
was. The agreement does contain a 16-year sunset clause with a review every
six years and some restrictions on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS).

So what’s the rush just now to have an agreement? The incoming Mexican
administration takes office on Dec. 1 and has said it would respect any
deal that the prior administration signed. Under the timelines passed by
the Mexican Congress, Peña Nieto has to give notice of his intent to sign a
new agreement by Aug. 31 at the very latest.

>From the beginning of the NAFTA renegotiations, civil society has been
clear about what things we needed to see from a new agreement to earn our
support. We must have strong, enforceable labor and environmental
standards, periodic review, improvements on auto rules-of-origin and
government procurement, and the removal of ISDS. Additionally, we’d like to
see Mexico implement improved labor standards prior to the agreement taking
effect.

The Trump administration has shown us time and time again that they were
not sure what exactly they wanted from a new NAFTA with rhetoric that
ranged from “NAFTA is the worst trade agreement ever signed” to “NAFTA just
needs a few tweaks.”

Trump campaigned on the promise to give the American people a trade
agreement that’s been negotiated with the interests of workers in mind.
This agreement has plenty of sweet treats in it for global corporations,
banks, and financial services, but it does not meet the expectations of
labor or the rest of civil society.

If Trump wants to deliver on his promises, he should go back to the
negotiating table and keep working until he’s got an agreement that’s good
for workers, the environment, and public health. Much more work needs to be
done.
Hillary Haden|Washington Fair Trade Coalition
206.227.3079|www.Washingtonfairtrade.org
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