Politics

Did Trump’s NAFTA Play Just Work Itself Out?

Reuters

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Vandana Rambaran Political Reporter
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Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto is in talks with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to get the ball rolling again on North American Free Trade Agreement negotiations that benefit Mexico, Canada and the U.S.

The nations have been at a standstill in coming to an agreement on trade despite nine months of talks, because Mexico and Canada refuse to meet America’s demand for wage increases in the auto industry and push to expand North American content in cars, Reuters reported Thursday. President Donald Trump has been unwavering on these stipulations in an effort to create jobs in the U.S., a promise he made to the American people during the 2016 campaign.

Trump’s “America First” trade agenda prioritizes reclaiming American manufacturing jobs that were lost to overseas competitors and renegotiating NAFTA to return more auto production to the U.S.

The Trump administration announced Wednesday that it was launching a national security investigation into car and truck imports that may be “weakening our internal economy” and “impair national security,” according to U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. (RELATED: Trump Admin Launches Investigation Into Foreign Car Imports That May Have ‘Eroded US Industry)

Trudeau responded in an interview with Reuters. “I am – even more than I was with steel and aluminum – trying to figure out where a possible national security connection is,” he said. (RELATED: Trump Announces New Tariffs On Aluminum And Steel) 

Still, both leaders from Canada and Mexico insist they will not reach a deal until the agreements prove they protect the interests of each country respectively.

“If an agreement is reached, it will be one that truly benefits Mexico. If these conditions don’t exist, Mexico will not move forward,” said Pena Nieto’s spokesman, Eduardo Sanchez.

Trump’s new investigation could be the key to reach an agreement on NAFTA.

“NAFTA is very difficult. Mexico has been very difficult to deal with. Canada has been very difficult to deal with … but I will tell you that in the end we win,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday. “We will win, and we’ll win big.”

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