Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Pat Roberts, R-Kan., warned Tuesday that pulling out of the North American Free Trade Agreement would be disastrous for the U.S. economy, particularly in the agriculture and energy industries.
The talks to renegotiate the 1993 trade deal between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico have been going poorly, and the three countries’ top negotiators have publicly traded barbs over the effort. This has raised the possibility that President Trump will follow through with his earlier threats to pull out of the deal.
Roberts argued that NAFTA had been a resounding success for the economy, but agreed that this was nevertheless poorly understood. “We are fighting a pervasive view that our economy has not benefited from NAFTA. We are coming to a crossroads and the decisions made on international trade will determine the future economic success of our country,” he said at a forum hosted by the Chamber of Commerce.
The senator said Mexico “barely registered” as a market prior to the deal, but was now a major trading partner and is the top destination for his state’s wheat exports.
Cruz, speaking at the same forum, warned that pulling out of NAFTA would also cut the U.S. off from major, and largely untapped, energy sources.
“When I sat down in my office and visited with the Mexican foreign minister, he expressed considerable interest on the part of Mexico in codifying the reforms they’ve made recently opening up their energy markets,” Cruz said. He added later, “The place they’re naturally going to look for the expertise, for the know-how to develop those resources, is the United States, and in particular my home state of Texas.”
Neither senator criticized the Trump administration, and both expressed hope that cooler heads within the White House would ultimately prevail. But both stressed that they didn’t know where the administration would draw its line in the sand. Roberts said he had personally told the president “not once, not twice, but on three occasions” how important free trade is to agriculture.
Cruz encouraged the audience to “let your voice be heard, because the administration is being pulled two different directions.”
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative declined to comment about the remarks by the two senators.
