North American Free Trade Agreement

Kenneth Smith Ramos suggests the battle over the deal's ratification could include requests for “concessions that have nothing to do with the USMCA,” such as tax policy changes or an increase in the federal minimum wage.

As discussions on how to resolve a Section 232 tariff dispute with Canada and Mexico continue, sources say a host of factors could keep the restrictions in place for some time, with President Trump insisting that quotas or tariffs be applied despite pushback from both countries and the prospect of further complications for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

The largest U.S. labor federation is calling for significant changes to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and warning that if the deal is voted on “prematurely,” it will mobilize opposition forces as it did for prior free trade agreements.

A handful of Democrats on Wednesday called a meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer generally constructive, but most said the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement did not yet have enough support to pass.

USMCA expected to be a key issue for the pro-trade bloc.

A senior White House official on Friday pushed back against claims that the U.S. and the European Union were far apart in early trade talks.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said on Tuesday that the removal of Section 232 tariffs on Canada and Mexico was the “first step” toward the passage of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, after which some Democratic concerns about the deal's environmental and labor provisions would have to be “accommodated.”

First up is a package of labor reforms, which could be approved before Mexico's Congress adjourns in late April.