Washington
Republican congressional leaders warned that a new version of the North American Free Trade Agreement would have to be completed by mid-May in order to give lawmakers time to pass it by the end of the year.
If negotiators from the United States, Mexico and Canada do not wrap up talks soon, Congress likely will not approve the deal until next year — after the midterms, when the political makeup on Capitol Hill could be very different.
President Donald Trump assailed NAFTA during his presidential campaign, vowing to tear up the deal.
Gov. Phil Scott’s administration has made no bones about its thoughts on the regional trade agreement. The Vermont Republican is overwhelmingly in favor of maintaining it.
In a letter referencing economic figures around the state in February, Scott urged people to voice their support for the trade arrangement.
A study by the prominent rating agency Moody’s Investors Service found that Vermont would be among the states most affected if the trade agreement is dissolved. The state is the third most dependent on NAFTA-related trade of all states in the country, according to the review.
U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said earlier this month that in order for the current Congress to vote on a new NAFTA deal, negotiations would have to be completed by May 17.
Ryan was asked about the timing of NAFTA at a press conference last week, after the deadline had passed.
He said there could be a couple weeks of “wiggle room” with the timing of the agreement.
“Will they get a deal? I do not know,” Ryan said.
Last Wednesday, Trump told reporters both Canada and Mexico have been “very difficult to deal with,” according to a pool report.
“They been taking advantage of the United States for a long time. I am not happy with their requests,” Trump said. “But I will tell you, in the end, we win. We will win, and we’ll win big.”
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has indicated that the administration is pushing to finish up a deal, and that the president has been involved with discussions. A Treasury spokesperson referred those asking questions about NAFTA to an interview Mnuchin did with CNBC last week.
“I think there is a desire on all three parties to try to get this deal done,” Mnuchin had said.
Asked about whether the administration would consider putting forward a so-called “skinny deal,” which would not require congressional approval, he said,
“I think for right now we’re still focused on a new NAFTA that would go through Congress, but we easily can look at the ‘skinny deal’ as an alternative, and that’s something the president can consider.”
Mnuchin also testified before a Senate panel last week, where he was questioned about American trade relationships in multiple parts of the world and the country’s ability to enforce sanctions.
In the hour-long hearing, he was not questioned about NAFTA.