Lawmakers warn Trump on USMCA with steel/aluminum duties still in place

Senate Finance Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and five other leading Republican senators went to the White House Thursday to warn President Donald Trump that if he wants the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to be ratified, steel and aluminum tariffs must be lifted, in addition to cutting a deal with House Democrats. If the metals tariffs remain in place, Trump will not have the votes to approve the deal in the GOP-controlled Senate, they said. “I do not know how much it matters in the House, but I think it definitely matters for our vote count over here,” said Senate Majority Whip John Thune, R-S.D. In the House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., reiterated that Democrats will not consider the USMCA for a vote without addressing her party’s concerns over enforcement, labor and environmental and pharmaceutical provisions in the text of the deal. Pelosi stressed that strengthening the agreement’s text to bolster enforcement remains the “overarching” issue. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said Pelosi should bring USMCA up for a vote. Asked whether it should be done before the Trump administration lifts tariffs on steel and aluminum from Mexico and Canada, he said: “Yes... I believe you would have a large number of votes from the Republicans, and the Democrats would only need a few to bring it across.” Our contacts view that assessment as too optimistic.