The Trump administration can make tweaks to the agreement to mollify concerns. But major revisions would require reopening talks with Mexico and Canada, a scenario Lighthizer has ruled out.
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland met with Lighthizer and Democratic lawmakers Monday in Washington, where she discussed USMCA and urged for the removal of metals tariffs.
Time may also not be on Trump’s side. A report on the pact’s economic impact is expected in mid-April. In the weeks that follow, the administration has to submit legislation to implement the agreement. But if the deal isn’t passed by Congress’s August recess, it may be doomed to languish until after the presidential election in November 2020.
‘Heavy Lift’
Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said Republicans tried to press the administration to ratify the deal when his party controlled the House because passage would become more difficult once Democrats took over at the start of this year. “It’s going to be a heavy lift, I fear,’’ Johnson told Fox News.
The president has repeatedly threatened to withdraw from the existing Nafta to pressure lawmakers to approve his new deal, a plan that Pelosi made clear is “not a good idea.” On Friday, Trump said if congressional Democrats don’t ratify USMCA, his alternative would be to “maybe go pre-Nafta” with trade practices in North America.
But with a strong economy expected to be one of Trump’s campaign talking points, he may be more hesitant now to pull the plug.
“It’s pretty clear that he’s not willing to take that gamble, given the effect that would have on markets ahead of the 2020 election,” said Alden, of the Council on Foreign Relations.
This article provided by Bloomberg News.