NAFTA’s deadline to end negotiations is only three days away and the trio is nowhere near settling on a deal. What’s the hold-up? The U.S. wants time limits on trade negotiations to prevent overspending without first reviewing sales. Mexico and Canada have pushed back against the United States’ deadline stating ‘they will not be rushed’.
According to Forbes, In theory, Congress could stay in session and rush the implementing legislation through at year’s end. But that assumes that the negotiated agreement is popular with a majority of each house. In practice, legislators have been sharply critical of the Trump administration’s negotiating stances. There could also be serious pushback from both members of Congress and the public to the idea of an outgoing Congress spending the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day rushing through a trade deal with virtually no hearings or debate.
As Written By Bloomberg:
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland aren’t scheduled to meet together in person this week, according to three government officials familiar with talks who spoke on condition of anonymity. The trio met at least bilaterally every day last week.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressed the talks in a phone call Monday — with the White House saying that Trump pushed for a quick deal while Trudeau’s office said they discussed the “possibility” of one. The Trump administration is increasingly preoccupied with its efforts to reach a peace deal with North Korea and avoid a trade war with China. Vice Premier Liu He — who is President Xi Jinping’s top aide for economic matters — will be in Washington this week for talks with the administration on ways to resolve the trade dispute between the two countries.