<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 30pt; background-color: white;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class=""><a href="https://www.rollcall.com/news/congress/trump-house-republicans-meet-line-support-new-nafta" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114);" class="">https://www.rollcall.com/news/congress/trump-house-republicans-meet-line-support-new-nafta</a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 11pt;" class=""> </span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 11.25pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white;"><b class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;" class="">Trump, House Republicans meet to line up support for new NAFTA<o:p class=""></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 11.25pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white;"><i class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class="">The USMCA would replace NAFTA, if simple majorities in the House and Senate approve it.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></i></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 30pt; background-color: white;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class="">3/26/2019</span><b style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 30pt;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class=""> </span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 15pt; background-color: white;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); text-decoration: none;" class=""><a href="https://www.rollcall.com/author/efergusoncq-com" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114);" class="">Ellyn Ferguson</a></span><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 15pt; background-color: white;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class=""><br class=""></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with a number of House Republicans later Tuesday as the White House steps up efforts to increase support for the proposed trade agreement to replace NAFTA.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">The afternoon meeting comes after Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer courted House Democrats earlier this month with closed-door meetings on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. It would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement if simple majorities in the House and Senate approve it.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class=""><a href="https://www.rollcall.com/members?465&utm_source=memberLink?utm_source=memberLink" target="_blank" title="Click to view member info in a new window" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114);" class=""><span style="color: rgb(51, 122, 183); text-decoration: none;" class="">Kevin Brady</span></a>, ranking member on the Ways and Means Committee, said Monday night that he does not know how many GOP lawmakers have accepted the White House invitation for the session.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">However, Brady said he and <a href="https://www.rollcall.com/members?25602&utm_source=memberLink?utm_source=memberLink" target="_blank" title="Click to view member info in a new window" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114);" class=""><span style="color: rgb(51, 122, 183); text-decoration: none;" class="">Vern Buchanan</span></a> of Florida, the top Republican on the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, will discuss their outreach efforts to GOP colleagues to back the proposed trade agreement. Brady said Minority Whip <a href="https://www.rollcall.com/members?22808&utm_source=memberLink?utm_source=memberLink" target="_blank" title="Click to view member info in a new window" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114);" class=""><span style="color: rgb(51, 122, 183); text-decoration: none;" class="">Steve Scalise</span></a> of Louisiana also is part of their drive to solidify Republican votes for the three-way pact.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">“The president is going to meet with us about his trade agenda, specifically about our effort we recently kicked off to support passage of USMCA,” said Brady of Texas. “We’ll work for the next month or so to build support for passage.”<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">Brady said it’s early in the process, adding that “trade votes are always challenging and require an all-in effort by the White House and an all-in effort by those who believe in more trade.”<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">Getting the new NAFTA through the House will require the votes of a majority of Republicans and an undetermined number of Democrats. Brady said he is concerned many Democrats may not want to give the president a victory on trade given their opposition to most of his policies.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">Democrats have voiced several concerns with the proposed pact including that it doesn’t stop the outsourcing of jobs.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">“There’s no good excuse for them not to back it,” Brady said, noting that Lighthizer included labor provisions in the updated NAFTA that Democrats have long sought.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">Rep. <a href="https://www.rollcall.com/members?17363&utm_source=memberLink?utm_source=memberLink" target="_blank" title="Click to view member info in a new window" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114);" class=""><span style="color: rgb(51, 122, 183); text-decoration: none;" class="">K. Michael Conaway</span></a>, House Agriculture ranking member and part of the GOP whip team, also said he will be at the meeting.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">The Texas Republican said he had few details about the White House meeting, but thought he’d been asked to attend because of his support for the trade agreement and his ties to rural and farm communities, key Trump constituencies.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">Most agriculture groups back the agreement, which would provide the U.S. dairy industry larger export quotas that would increase sales into Canada and maintain most duty-free or low tariffs provided under the 1994 NAFTA.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">“I am obviously a vocal supporter of USMCA. I want to get it done,” Conaway said.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 15pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5pt; background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">Trump and his counterparts in Canada and Mexico signed the proposed trade agreement on Nov. 30, 2018. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement would retain NAFTA’s duty-free treatment of most goods traded among the three countries, add language on e-commerce which did not exist in 1994 and, among other provisions, would require Mexico to allow its workers to start independent unions to bargain for higher wages and better working conditions.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></p><div class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class=""><br class=""></span></div></body></html>