WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Trump has announced a new trade deal with Mexico and Canada. It’s called the USMCA and it will replace NAFTA, that’s if it gets congressional approval as well as approval from the governments of Mexico and Canada.
Greencastle State Rep. Jim Baird, who grew up and still runs a farm in Putnam County, calls it the deal that Hoosier farmers wanted to see.
“To have our products moving into those countries is extremely important to our well-being and extremely important to agriculture,” Baird said. “Agriculture in general is happy to see fair trade and to see the tariffs lowered to at least make trade much easier.”
Baird, who is running for Todd Rokita’s seat in the U.S. House, refers to the tariffs President Trump placed on corn and soybeans last year. Those tariff’s would be scaled back under the proposed deal, but steal and aluminum tariffs would stay as they are.
The deal still needs congressional approval as well as approval from the Mexican and Canadian governments. The President is confident it will pass.
“If it’s fair it will pass,” Trump said in a news conference on the White House lawn. “Everyone loves it. Industry loves it, our country loves it.”
Indiana Congressman Larry Bucshon says NAFTA was “in desperate need of modernization”, and the USMCA does that.
(PHOTO: Scott Olsen/Getty Images)
