Ag Expert: Trump “Playing with Fire” with NAFTA

A farm trade expert says President Trump is “playing with fire” with his comments at a Phoenix rally Tuesday that he’s more likely to terminate NAFTA.  Major farm groups are reluctant or declining to comment on President Trump’s latest threat to withdraw from the trade agreement, altogether.

“I assume what the President is trying to do was to sort of bully the two other parties into making concessions and making the quickly to balance trade," said former Department of Agriculture trade advisor in the Bill Clinton Administration, Paul Drazek. "I think that might work in relations in dealing with real estate sales and purchases but I don’t think it works went it comes to international trade negotiations.”

Drazek said President Trump’s intent to pull out of NAFTA if talks fail would be “catastrophic” for all three countries’ economies, especially in agriculture, where trade has grown exponentially.  He added the threat of a pull-out is a big “gamble” by the President.

“That’s playing with fire and from all we’ve heard from those two countries so far, they, Mexico in particular said they are not going to negotiate with a gun to their heads”

Drazek said the “fear” of a U.S. pull-out from NAFTA has “galvanized” U.S. agriculture in the past and will do so again, to prevent US.. abandonment of the agreement.

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