<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=""><i class="">Two articles below…</i><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=0019lN59xGgaddo_ovEzpy8fvIBOhbwhqNvJ-6hIKDTU1jNOpm5RT12z-dj5mZZuWDe6UBVTGyvcrAM34N9cmUl2wy7I8v_BmWIElAv-aRutMIGGXbn_8RbnFDPm6u4yOgbZ1FR6HxIusbX7KZXT91L0pe9tZO73xv-fpH6_y07Z4P6NNl6Ii-tQDBgvQxTWJKbeddRACBRHQG3OLDuAmfgXKQZdPXWIvg7Bqc16TS9mlE=&c=WpzwZoqZxT_5f3I5S6VqBjs8aSd-NQweqeJAItw3J9iziwLl3Euyng==&ch=cKheM9JTp62HBaUe-aNlY8u72QxyUuP3RiprP4Vftc_xzrK65nlYuQ==" target="_blank" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">https://www.politico.com/story/2019/06/18/afl-trumka-trump-unions-trade-1535282</a></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">AFL-CIO’s Richard Trumka laughs at Trump’s suggestion unions love new trade deal</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">By Sabrina Rodriguez</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">June 18, 2019</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">President Donald Trump has repeatedly said unions are supportive of the new North American trade pact, as he ramps up his push for Congress to approve the deal this summer.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">But the head of America's largest labor organization thinks Trump's claim is laughable.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">"Maybe he’s talking about the unions in some other country?” AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka told POLITICO, laughing at Trump’s suggestion that unions are “in favor” of the deal his administration negotiated with Mexico and Canada to replace NAFTA.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“I don’t have a clue” where Trump gets that from, Trumka said, “because we’re pretty united.” Unions in the U.S., he warned, will not support the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement in its current form.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">The AFL-CIO and other major unions like United Automobile Workers have said the USMCA features some improvements for workers compared with NAFTA, but the Trump administration still has work to do to earn their backing.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">And while ratification of the USMCA is Trump's top legislative priority this year, getting the deal approved in the Democrat-controlled House could hinge on the administration's ability to address the shared concerns of House Democrats and organized labor, such as securing changes to bolster enforcement of the pact.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Trumka emphasized that labor unions want to support USMCA, but he cautioned the administration to allow time for negotiations with House Democrats to play out.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“We still have a lot of work to do and rushing this thing or trying to push it through to a vote will backfire, because if people were forced to vote on the current text, they would have to vote 'no,'" Trumka said in an interview Monday, ahead of a three-day NAFTA town hall series the AFL-CIO is hosting in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democrats have made clear that the administration must make changes to the deal’s provisions on enforcement, labor, the environment and drug pricing before a final vote can be held. Last week, Pelosi appointed nine House Democrats to four committees that will negotiate proposed changes on those topics with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Lighthizer has been active in courting congressional support for the deal. He has expressed a desire to get the pact approved with backing from a large number of Democrats and held numerous meetings with Democratic lawmakers in an effort to listen to their concerns.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">The U.S. trade chief has repeatedly told Democrats he does not want to send Congress legislation to implement the trade deal until Pelosi gives her blessing.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">But in recent weeks, House Democrats and insiders tracking the deal increasingly believe that other administration officials are growing impatient and want to move more quickly by sending the bill to Capitol Hill without Pelosi’s support.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“There are people in the Trump administration that are trying to rush this thing through and I think it’s a terrible, foolish strategy because it will blow up in their face,” Trumka said.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“I think the reasonable people in the Trump administration know it’s more important to get this right than to do it tomorrow.”</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">If the administration decides to make a pressure play, Pelosi could short-circuit consideration of the deal by removing it from the so-called fast-track procedure Congress agreed to under the Trade Promotion Authority legislation. That process allows the deal to be approved in an up-or-down vote by a simple majority in both chambers, in an effort to provide for speedier approval of trade deals.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">======</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><div class=""><a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=0019lN59xGgaddo_ovEzpy8fvIBOhbwhqNvJ-6hIKDTU1jNOpm5RT12z-dj5mZZuWDe6s-ZZQf914TEdyytPFqWxz6V4VZAjXEBjbfWeTkWSe-W1BgBEYYAp-hbM9Qh3EDfCy5ULfBszbbUslZT0cvqidKK-K9COKibxWLoL8kA1o1Ia1oMUkAFSerzboRCnYtoYu9eSSiC-veBXMe8zyukGp4CW0KPwoH5s7_ZS6tXsQo8gIL4TVsvlD-p3-ayZ4-taKa4DiE8pyx_z_Xm57TKxauOb2KF5ELscvHEPBwA0ZR4O_hbGs0w9g==&c=WpzwZoqZxT_5f3I5S6VqBjs8aSd-NQweqeJAItw3J9iziwLl3Euyng==&ch=cKheM9JTp62HBaUe-aNlY8u72QxyUuP3RiprP4Vftc_xzrK65nlYuQ==" target="_blank" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">https://www.post-gazette.com/business/money/2019/06/17/AFL-CIO-President-Trumka-town-hall-NAFTA-negotiations/stories/201906170100</a></div><div class=""><br class=""></div></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">AFL-CIO president says current NAFTA deal is unenforceable</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;" class=""><br class=""></span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;" class="">By Amanda Parrish</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">June 17, 2019</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;" class=""> </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">It’s a debate about people.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">That was the message presented at AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka’s first stop on his NAFTA Trade Tour. Mr. Trumka, a southwestern Pennsylvania native, led a town hall Monday evening at the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers on the South Side.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Along the topics discussed Monday was what is needed from the current NAFTA negotiations to benefit working Americans.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">NAFTA is an agreement between the United States, Canada and Mexico to reduce trade barriers between the three countries. In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed it into law and it went into effect January 1994.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“We need something that benefits all Americans, not just those at the very top,” Mr. Trumka said. “Something better for our working people. Something better for our economy. Something better for everyone.”</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Beth Mikus, a 30-year member and employee of Service Employees International Union, asked if it might be beneficial to accept the agreement if it’s better than the original and then fix it as time goes on. Mr. Trumka responded by saying that it is not better because it’s not enforceable. He said if they can’t enforce it, it’s useless.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">The current deal falls short of what American workers need, Mr. Trumka said, noting major points, such as how it lacks ways to enforce higher labor standards and includes more benefits to “Big Pharma.”</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">In September, the U.S., Mexico and Canada agreed to replace NAFTA. President Donald Trump and his administration have been promoting the renegotiated trade terms called USMCA — United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Vice President Mike Pence visited a manufacturing facility in York County earlier this month to promote the new deal.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Congress has not ratified the new trade deal due to its similarity to NAFTA.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Mr. Trumka said that the labor movement supports trade and would support NAFTA if it benefits working Americans, which is why the AFL-CIO submitted a list of more than 130 changes to NAFTA. He said AFL-CIO has been present in meetings.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“They know exactly here we stand. They know exactly what an agreement should be,” he said.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Mr. Trumka said the U.S. spends much more on immigration enforcement than on labor standards — about $24 billion on immigration and $2 billion on labor, such as working rights, pension rights and health care rights.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">The 25-year-old trade deal has largely helped the average North American, but economists said that a small portion of blue-collar workers in manufacturing industries have suffered. Thirty-eight thousand jobs have been lost in Western Pennsylvania due to NAFTA, Darrin Kelly, president of the Allegheny/Fayette Central Labor Council, said.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Rick Bloomingdale, president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, said that if you drive around Western Pennsylvania you can see the effects of NAFTA.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“They devastated the economy. They have devastated Western Pennsylvania,” Mr. Bloomingdale said.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Lindsey Disler, who works in the organizing department for the United Steelworkers, said as someone who was born the same year NAFTA went into effect, she and her peers have witnessed first-hand the effects of NAFTA.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“I know no other life than dealing with the ramifications and fallout of NAFTA,” she said. </span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“Many of us watched our peers’ parents lose their jobs to having them to move down to Mexico.”</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Fred Redmond, international vice president of United Steelworkers, said that NAFTA has caused the wages and benefits for workers to decrease.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“The system is not designed benefit workers in the U.S. or Mexico,” Mr. Redmond said. “It is designed to maximize corporate gains.”</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Mr. Trumka said that the U.S. need to take its time and create an agreement that works.</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“It’s more important to get it done right than get it done tomorrow.”</span></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="color: rgb(54, 73, 95); font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Trumka will also make stops in Ohio and Michigan on Tuesday and Wednesday.</span></div><div class=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></span></div><div class="">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; " class=""><div class="">Arthur Stamoulis</div><div class="">Citizens Trade Campaign</div><div class="">(202) 494-8826</div><div class=""><br class=""></div></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline">
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