Democratic-led House expected to give Trump big win on trade

One day after impeaching President Donald Trump, Democratic-led House is expected to overwhelmingly pass one of his signature priorities, a rewrite of 25-year-old free tre agreement he blames for shipping U.S. manufacturing jobs to Mexico.

A bill implementing terms of United States-Mexico-Cana Agreement is expected to pass Thursday with bipartisan support after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her colleagues won key concessions from an ministration anxious to pass tre deal before next year’s election season makes that task more difficult.  agreement is projected to have only a modest impact on ecomy. But it gives lawmakers from both parties chance to support an agreement sought by farmers, ranchers and business owners anxious to move past months of tre tensions that have complicated spending and hiring decisions.

Trump me tearing up rth American Free Tre Agreement a hallmark of his presidential run in 2016 as he tried to win over working-class voters in states such as Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. vote offers evidence that he followed through. “We wouldn’t even be discussing USMCA if it were t for President Trump,” said Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo. “You can’t debate that.”

It’s unclear how many Democrats will vote for bill. Some say agreement still doesn’t do eugh to prevent U.S. jobs from relocating to Mexico, but it has won praise from Democrats who have routinely voted against prior tre agreements. “I’ll probably get some flak from some of my friends back in Chicago,” said Rep. Danny Davis, D-Ill. “But I’m going to vote for this agreement because I believe that it moves us forward.”

House Ways and Means Committee vanced bill by voice vote Tuesday. If House passes it as expected, Senate will likely take it up when its members return from holidays and after dealing with impeachment.  original NAFTA phased out nearly all tariffs on goods produced and tred within rth America. It was extraordinary because it linked two wealthy, developed countries with a poor, developing country. Since n, tre with Cana and Mexico has increased more rapidly than tre with most or countries.

Democrats for years have charged that NAFTA led to massive losses of high-paying manufacturing jobs in U.S. as companies moved production to low-w Mexico. Trump distinguished himself from free-tre Republicans in presidential primary with his NAFTA-bashing rhetoric, and his ministration got Cana and Mexico to negotiate a rewrite.  International Tre Commission projected in April that USMCA would boost ecomy by $68 billion and d 176,000 jobs six years after taking effect.

Some of biggest impacts would be felt in U.S. automotive industry. agreement aims to see more cars produced where workers earn an aver of at least $16 an hour.  commission found that new agreement would create 30,000 jobs in American auto parts plants. On downside, commission found pact would increase cost of pickup trucks and cars. That would hurt demand and reduce number of jobs in factories that assemble cars by about 1,500.

Business and farm groups h been hitting airwaves and halls of Congress to get lawmakers to support pact, putting pressure on Democrats to work with ministration even as labour unions remained wary that new deal represented much of an improvement from NAFTA. Trump, at times, seemed resigned to assessment that two sides would never reach a compromise. “She’s incapable of moving it,” Trump asserted of Pelosi just a few weeks ago.

But behind scenes, Trump’s point person on tre, U.S. Tre Representative Robert Lighthizer, was working with House Democrats on changes to dress ir concerns. agreement includes a process that could le to inspections of factories and facilities in Mexico that are t living up to labour obligations. It secures more than $600 million for environmental problems in NAFTA region. It also scrapped giving pharmaceutical companies 10 years’ protection from cheaper competition in a category of ultra-expensive drugs called biologics, which are used to fight such illnesses as cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes.

In end, AFL-CIO endorsed pact, as have U.S. Chamber of Commerce and or major business groups. Trump can show he was able to follow through on a signature campaign issue while Democrats can say y were able to pursue impeachment while passing major legislation. Some Republicans are grumbling that Democrats took too long to get USMCA across finish line, but many are quite happy with result. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., said pact reminded him of when he would write a letter to Santa, and it would be answered with most of presents he wanted on Christmas morning.