[CTC] President Trumka reiterates NAFTA's not ready

[Arthur Stamoulis]

"I don't care whether it's November, December, January or November of next year. When the agreement is worthy of the American people, we'll vote on it. And if it isn't, we'll oppose it."


Politico Morning Trade

— The head of America's largest labor organization dismissed the idea that the time for House Democrats to pass the USMCA is now or never, and said there's a plan in the works to ensure Mexico keeps its commitments on labor reform.

TRUMKA: WHAT'S THE RUSH WITH USMCA? AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on Thursday evening shut down any insinuation that the chances of passing the USMCA are slim if Congress does not approve it this year. He said House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal  <http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b7904bd081545490d06e3c7b0b0d36255f832040db145f8a57d47db1e2cf03c2ada052f18174824f363522c40594f769>and Democrats tasked with securing changes to the pact are not going to strike a deal with Lighthizer until the USMCA is strongly enforceable. 

"What's magic about this year?" Trumka asked reporters following a speech at the University of the District of Columbia's law school.

"I don't care whether it's November, December, January or November of next year. When the agreement is worthy of the American people, we'll vote on it. And if it isn't, we'll oppose it," he added. 

Trumka emphasized that USMCA negotiations should not have an artificial deadline, adding that he talks to Lighthizer all the time and he has seen "some movement" in the USMCA working group's negotiations with the trade chief. 

Support from Trumka and other labor leaders is likely key to getting enough Democrats to vote for the USMCA.

An eye on Mexico: The U.S. labor leader explained that he remains concerned that Mexico is not fully equipped to implement its major labor reforms, but he credited Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador for showing "good faith." Trumka said there's discussion about a potential plan to ensure that Mexico implements its reforms that would target big employers in the auto industry and show that the government can undo protection contracts and ensure workers have unions that represent them. 

"The Italians have a saying: To trust is good. To not trust is better," Trumka said. "Enough with the trust. Show us something."



Arthur Stamoulis
Citizens Trade Campaign
(202) 494-8826




-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.citizenstrade.org/pipermail/ctcfield-citizenstrade.org/attachments/20191025/fb7ecd25/attachment.html>