>>> TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, I WOULDN’T MIND SEEING NAFTA WHERE
YOU WOULD GO BY A DIFFERENT NAME
WHERE YOU MAKE A SEPARATE DEAL
WITH CANADA AND A SEPARATE DEAL
WITH MEXICO.
WITH MEXICO. BECAUSE YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT A
VERY DIFFERENT TWO COUNTRIES.
>> HERE TO HELP ME EXPLAIN WHAT
IS IN THIS NEW PRELIMINARY
AGREEMENT, REMEMBER THAT’S WHAT
I’M CALLING IT, IS AUSTAN
GOOLSBEE, CURRENTLY A PROFESSOR
OF ECONOMICS AT THE UNIVERSITY
OF CHICAGO.
OF CHICAGO. THE PRESIDENT THIS MORNING SAID
HE’S GETTING RID OF NAFTA.
THIS IS THE U.S.-MEXICO TRADE
AGREEMENT, THEN HE GOT NAFTA ON
THE PHONE TALKING ABOUT CANADA
AND HOW HAPPY THEY ARE TO GET
CANADA IN ON THIS THING, SO THEY
DON’T SEEM TO KNOW WHAT HAS BEEN
AGREED TO.
AGREED TO. >> IT’S NOT REALLY MUCH OF
ANYTHING.
ANYTHING. EVERY DAY WE DON’T HAVE A TRADE
WAR IS GOOD FOR THE ECONOMY.
TODAY WE DIDN’T HAVE -- IF
DONALD TRUMP WANTS TO DO A
SMALL, MEANINGLESS ADJUSTMENT TO
ONE SECTOR WITHIN NAFTA AND
FIRST TALK TO MEXICO, THAT’S
FINE.
FINE. IF THAT KEEPS HIM FROM RANTING
AND RAVING AND STARTING A TRADE
WAR, THEN WE SHOULD ALL CLAP
POLITELY AND SAY, GOOD JOB, MR.
PRESIDENT, AND JUST MOVE ON TO
THE NEXT THING.
>> THE STOCK MARKET RESPONDED
WELL BECAUSE I THINK THEY
HAVEN’T SEEN SINCE FEBRUARY WHEN
ALL THIS NONSENSE STARTED THAT,
OH, MAYBE THERE ARE THINGS THIS
PRESIDENT CAN DO THAT AREN’T
TRADE WARISH.
TRADE WARISH. THE DEAL DOESN’T LOOK BAD BUT IT
DEALS WITH ONE THING, THE AUTO
SECTOR.
SECTOR. IT’S A SMALL THING THAT TRUMP
SAID HE WOULD GET IF HE
NEGOTIATED WITH ONE COUNTRY
RATHER THAN NEGOTIATING WITH
CANADA AND MEXICO.
IT’S NOT BAD.
>> IT’S NOT GOOD, IT’S JUST A
COUPLE LITTLE CRUMBS, BUT JUST
TO PUT IN CONTEXT, BOTH CANADA
AND MEXICO AGREED TO FAR MORE
EXPANSIVE THINGS THAT WERE IN
THE U.S.’S FAVOR TO BECOME PART
OF THE TRANS-PACIFIC
PARTNERSHIP.
PARTNERSHIP. IF THEY HAD SIGNED THE
TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP, THEY
WOULD HAVE MADE MUCH MORE
SIGNIFICANT CONCESSIONS THAN
THIS ONLY IN THE AUTO SECTOR
THING THAT THEY’RE TALKING ABOUT
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. >> WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE FEW
CONCESSIONS THAT ARE IN THERE?
FOR INSTANCE, OF THE PARTS THAT
GOING TO BE MADE TO MAKE A NORTH
AMERICAN CAR HAVE TO BE AT A
MINIMUM OF $16 AN HOUR.
WHAT’S THE NET EFFECT OF THAT?
DOES THAT MEAN MEXICANS WILL
EARN MORE OR DOES THAT MEAN MORE
PLANTS WILL STAY IN AMERICA?
>> WELL, A, LET’S SET ASIDE THE
WHOLE THING OF THIS STILL NEEDS
TO BE NEGOTIATED AND DETAILS AND
STILL NEEDS TO BE VOTED ON.
>> MEXICO AND AMERICA, AND IF
CANADA IS STILL INVOLVED, BY
CANADA.
CANADA. >> WITH WHAT WE’VE SEEN OF KIND
OF INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS OF
THIS FORM WHERE YOU TRY TO PUT
IN VERY SPECIFIC ONE-SECTOR
DEALS LIKE THAT IS A COUNTING
GIMMICKRY.
GIMMICKRY. I WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED AT ALL
IF IN A WAY THEY CALLED IT
RAISING THE WAGES IN MEXICO, IN
A DIFFERENT WAY THEY SPLIT THE
FIRM INTO TWO AND THEY SAID, OH,
NO, THIS FIRM IS PAYING $16 AN
HOUR TO THE TWO MANAGERS, IT WAS
THAT OTHER FIRM THAT’S PAYING
LESS.
LESS. I THINK THE ORIGINAL NAFTA
LOWERED TARIFFS ON THOUSANDS OF
PRODUCTS.
PRODUCTS. AFFECTED HUNDREDS OF
INDUSTRIES --
INDUSTRIES -- >> YOU MEAN IN NAFTA WHICH WAS
THE WORST DEAL EVER MADE.
>> IT WAS THE WORST DEAL.
I THOUGHT ON THE PHONE MEXICO
WAS MAYBE CALLING HIS PEOPLE AND
SAYING, YOU MEAN AT THE END OF
THE DAY DONALD TRUMP WAS ASKING
US TO SIGN A DEAL TO DO ALMOST
NOTHING?
NOTHING? HE’S TRYING TO TAKE IT AS FAST
AS POSSIBLE.
AS POSSIBLE. LET’S JUST SIGN IT AND MOVE ON
TO THE NEXT THING.
>> IT DOES SEEM THIS IS NOT AS
BIG A THING AS THE PRESIDENT
WANTED PEOPLE TO THINK IN THAT