[CTC] Trump’s trade chief meets skepticism as he sells new NAFTA to Democrats

Wed Mar 13 10:10:53 PDT 2019

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/13/trump-nafta-democrats-1266166 <https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/13/trump-nafta-democrats-1266166>

Trump’s trade chief meets skepticism as he sells new NAFTA to Democrats

By: Sabrina Rodriguez 
03/13/2019

President Donald Trump’s trade chief Robert Lighthizer will be on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to entice House Democrats into supporting the new North American trade pact, but already it’s becoming clear that outreach alone won’t get the votes needed.

In the latest show of disapproval to the deal, leaders of the 90-plus members of Congressional Progressive Caucus announced <https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/12/democrats-against-nafta-replacement-1263704> on Tuesday that they want to reopen the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that the Trump administration spent more than a year negotiating with the two U.S. trading partners.

Lighthizer and other administration officials have been meeting for months with lawmakers to work out their concerns. But the trade representative is expected to have to confront a host of complaints from Democrats across the spectrum on widespread concerns over aspects of the pact.

“I think Mr. Lighthizer is perceived as a professional, so I think he comes with a more positive attitude than some others,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. “But I also think there’s deep disagreement, perhaps, with the policies he may be talking about.”

As White House efforts ramp up to sell the deal, it’s becoming increasingly clear that Lighthizer’s effort building goodwill will not be enough for the deal to make it through both chambers, especially in the Democrat-controlled House.

The new pact, which will replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement, would fulfill one of Trump’s signature promises to blow up what he pegged as a "historic trade blunder" and bring jobs back to the United States. Trump has previously threatened to withdraw from NAFTA as a way to pressure Congress into passing USMCA, but Lighthizer has been quietly trying to speak to lawmakers about their concerns.

“We want to make sure we have a bill that works for labor, for the environment, for consumers,” said Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The group has taken particular issue with intellectual property protections that they say could lock in high prescription drug prices.

Hoyer specified that “honestly there has not been broad discussion on this issue at this point in time because frankly the administration hasn’t been doing much.” But he added that he expects there will be many more talks after Lighthizer’s meeting with the caucus.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) said she opposes the pact as it stands because it fails to help manufacturing-heavy communities like her district that were devastated by NAFTA and other trade policies.

"We have a chance to repair the damage that was done, and I don’t think this proposal deals with that," Kaptur said in an interview with POLITICO. She said the House should hold hearings on the issue but should not go as far as a vote on the floor.

"You put it on the shelf and let it be an issue in the presidential campaign," Kaptur said.

The timetable for any vote in Congress remains in flux. The administration has not yet submitted the draft text for the bill that lawmakers would have to approve. Lighthizer has indicated he would want to address concerns through that bill, instead of by a full renegotiation of the agreement.

But the final call on the path for the USMCA rests on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Lighthizer told lawmakers in a meeting Tuesday that he’d like to submit that bill as soon as possible, but timing will ultimately be up to Pelosi, according to a source in the room. He acknowledged that the Trump administration will not submit anything until she asks for it.

In addition, some lawmakers are waiting for the results of an analysis that the U.S. International Trade Commission, an independent body, is producing on the economic impact of the deal. That is not expected to be released until mid-April.

Democrats are also attacking Trump’s 2020 budget request for more border wall funding and deep cuts to safety net programs, which could complicate the White House’s ambitious timeline for getting USMCA through Congress this summer.

“I’m afraid that the president is setting us up for another budget border wall fight this fall, which could suck the air out of getting anything done,” Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.), a member of the free-trade oriented New Democrat coalition, said. “Realistically, if we’re going to move it, we’re going to have to be serious about pre-August recess. Otherwise, we hit 2020 campaign and this thing could just not happen.”

The White House, for its part, has been putting together an organized strategy in recent months to try and persuade House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to hold a vote for USMCA.

But the administration has also been embroiled in another spat with Canada and Mexico over steel and aluminum tariffs that Trump imposed in the name of national security. The two neighbors have responded in kind by imposing their own counter-tariffs, mostly on American agricultural exports.

That feud has captured the attention of Democrats and Republicans alike, who say the issue must be resolved before a vote can be taken on the new USMCA.
Separately, a group of 23 newly elected moderate Democrats want Lighthizer to consult them more on various provisions. The freshmen, all members of the free trade-oriented New Democrat coalition, indicated that they “strongly support replacing NAFTA,” but they want more time with Lighthizer and his team.

“Our votes should not be taken for granted,” the group said in a letter to Lighthizer. For his part, Lighthizer met on Tuesday with the New Democrats, who are widely viewed as a key coalition that could deliver Democratic votes for the deal.

So far, Pelosi has echoed Democratic concerns, but has not offered her opinion on how she’ll vote or when she will move the deal for a vote.

Pro-trade Democrats, particularly New Democrats, are “ready to marshal the votes for a trade vote when Pelosi is ready to move one. But they’re not going to do it until she’s ready. They’re going to work closely with her, recognizing that a lot of the caucus isn’t going to be there ever,” said a longtime Democratic strategist and former House aide.

Heather Caygle, Sarah Ferris and Adam Behsudi contributed to this report.

Arthur Stamoulis
Citizens Trade Campaign
(202) 494-8826

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