Administration Expected to Notify Congress on Redoing NAFTA

Now that Wilbur Ross is officially confirmed as Secretary of Commerce, the Trump administration may soon turn its attention to the North American Free Trade Agreement.  Ross told members of the House Ways and Means Committee, which oversees trade, that the administration would notify them in mid-March that it will renegotiate the 23-year old pact.  Once the administration communicates its intent, it then must consult with Congress on the objective of trade talks during a 90-day period.

Te administration then must make public a detailed summary of the specific objectives. One possible holdup is President Trump’s pick to head the Office of the Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer has yet to be confirmed by the Senate. The National Pork Producer’s Council has issued a statement saying any redone NAFTA deal must in no way disrupt U.S. pork trade with the industry’s #2, Mexico and #4 Canada markets.

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