Canada Could Be Pressed Into Reopening NAFTA, US Lawmaker Says

Canada Could Be Pressed Into Reopening NAFTA, US Lawmaker Says
Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari (L) greets then-Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and U.S. President George Bush on Oct. 7, 1992 in San Antonio, Texas. The leaders met to initial the North American Free Trade Agreement, which may be renegotiated depending on who becomes the next U.S. president. AP Photo/Marcy Nighswander
The Canadian Press
Updated:

WASHINGTON—Canada might be forced to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement if the next U.S. president insists upon it, a Washington lawmaker says.

During a forum co-hosted by the Canadian American Business Council on May 24, California congressman Darrell Issa said Canada is so trade-reliant on the U.S. that it couldn’t easily ignore an American ultimatum on revising the deal.

“We could walk away from NAFTA any time,” said Issa, a Republican who sits on different congressional committees dedicated to intellectual property, foreign affairs, and trade. “We’ve always been able to.”

Every major candidate for president has expressed support for changing NAFTA. Republican Donald Trump is a virulent, decades-long critic of trade deals which he’s repeatedly said he would change; Democrat Bernie Sanders has been equally critical; and likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has occasionally expressed support for reopening NAFTA.

Trade analysts have called the idea of scrapping NAFTA mind-bogglingly complex, given how product supply chains have grown since the 1993 agreement and tariffs have shrunk.

Even overhauling the deal might be risky, Issa himself cautioned. But if it happens, he offered two examples of sectors the U.S. could demand to have opened up.

Both are important to his home state.

California congressman Darrell Issa speaks at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 16, 2011. Issa says Canada is so trade-reliant on the U.S. that it couldn't easily ignore an American ultimatum on revising the deal. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
California congressman Darrell Issa speaks at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 16, 2011. Issa says Canada is so trade-reliant on the U.S. that it couldn't easily ignore an American ultimatum on revising the deal. AP Photo/Alex Brandon