President Trump wanted a new NAFTA deal. Last year he got the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, but it still hasn’t been approved by Congress. And if Trump wants the deal to be more than a piece of paper with signatures on it, he’d do well to take the advice of Sen. Chuck Grassley R-Iowa.
On Sunday, Grassley penned an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal explaining that for lawmakers, the hang-up with the USMCA isn’t so much the bill itself but Trump’s insistence on keeping steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico in place. As Grassley put it:
Grassley is right. Not only did Trump promise that once an agreement was reached the tariffs would be lifted, but keeping those tariffs on our neighbors and allies is a huge blow to our credibility on free trade. Those tariffs also aren’t even working as intended. Instead of pushing back against China, for example, the steel tariffs have done just the opposite, as current exemptions favor Chinese steel over Canadian imports.
But the tariffs are even worse for U.S. businesses and consumers, and especially farmers such as those among Grassley’s constituents in Iowa. Retaliatory tariffs from Canada and Mexico have significantly hurt agriculture and made life even more difficult for farmers struggling from an ongoing trade war with China, a season of damaging weather, and, of course, higher prices for equipment that includes steel.
If Trump wants a boost for himself and his base and another check mark for his list of “promises kept,” he needs to take Grassley’s advice. Lifting the tariffs would be a win for him and for the country.
