Democrats could hold up passage of NAFTA revamp

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s promise to quickly pass a revamped North American Free Trade Agreement has been upended by the midterm elections, as Democrats who will control the House come January vow to withhold their support to extract greater protections for American workers.

Administration officials remain confident that they will corral the votes for the new United States-MexicoCanada Agreement, which Trump speedily negotiated in September to claim a big win on one of his signature issues before the November elections.

White House officials considered pushing the revised deal through the coming lameduck session, but they did not want to risk a backlash from lawmakers in both parties.

Democrats, emboldened by their midterm win and eager to outshine Trump as defenders of the American worker, are unlikely to support any deal that does not include significant changes that labor leaders and newly elected progressives demand. That could involve reopening negotiations with Mexico, although U.S. and Mexican negotiators have both publicly ruled that out.

“Trump made it seem like this was a done deal, but there is a long, long way to go,” said Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., who is likely to be named chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee’s Subcommittee on Trade.

The House will take up the agreement first, under the Constitution’s provision mandating that revenue bills originate in the lower chamber. A vote could be nine months or longer away, according to senior administration officials.

House Democrats are particularly concerned about a provision that would require at least 30 percent of the labor used to build each car in Mexico to be completed by workers earning at least $16 an hour. That amount will rise to 40 percent by 2023, but the $16 wage is not indexed to inflation, meaning the increase will be diluted over time as prices rise.

The text of the agreement also requires Mexico to make it easier for workers to join unions.

Democrats and their union allies fear these actions wouldn’t deter automakers and other manufacturers from shifting American jobs south for cheaper labor.