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Economy |
McCain: NAFTA Retreat Will Raise Prices, Cost Jobs |
2017-01-30 |
[PJ] WASHINGTON -- Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) warned that President Trump could end up hurting Americans in the wallet with a looming trade war with Mexico. At the Republicans' congressional retreat in Philadelphia on Thursday, Trump told lawmakers that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) "has been a terrible deal, a total disaster for the United States from its inception, costing us as much as $60 billion a year with Mexico alone in trade deficits." "You say, who negotiates these deals? Not to mention, millions of jobs and thousands and thousands of factories and plants closing down all over our country," Trump said. "I will not allow the taxpayers or the citizens of the United States to pay the costs of this defective transaction, NAFTA, one that should have been renegotiated many years ago except the politicians were too preoccupied to do so." McCain said in a statement that "while renegotiations could help to strengthen and modernize NAFTA to benefit American businesses and consumers, any effort to restrict or impose new barriers on our ability to trade with Mexico and Canada could jeopardize the future of this trade agreement and have serious consequences for Arizona and the country." "Facts are stubborn things, and the facts clearly show that NAFTA has delivered enormous economic benefits to the citizens of my home state since it went into effect in 1994," the senator said, adding that "in just two decades, Arizona’s exports to Canada and Mexico have increased by $5.7 billion, or 236 percent." He noted that international trade supports more than 20 percent of jobs in his home state, "which pay roughly 18 percent higher salaries." |
Posted by:Besoeker |
#13 McCain had to temporarily remove Schumer's dick from his mouth to speak to reporters. |
Posted by: Iblis 2017-01-30 22:15 |
#12 If it costs McCain his job it will be sufficient. |
Posted by: ed in texas 2017-01-30 19:16 |
#11 Is McCain still around? He's as old as the Flintstones, Arizona's only living fossil. |
Posted by: Nero White 3083 2017-01-30 16:25 |
#10 Friendssssshhhh, that tuck n roll upholssssshtery job on your Shhhhtutz Bearcat issssshhh going to cossssshhht more... |
Posted by: M. Murcek 2017-01-30 15:54 |
#9 Shorter McCain: "I've got mine and it sucks to be you!" |
Posted by: magpie 2017-01-30 15:28 |
#8 To translate McCain speak: "Where's my graft from that?" |
Posted by: AlanC 2017-01-30 14:22 |
#7 I also think a trade war might force the Mexican government to reform the worst of their corruption. Something they desperately need if they ever want to crawl their way out of the third world. |
Posted by: rjschwarz 2017-01-30 11:51 |
#6 Perhaps it will raise prices and cost jobs, but it will also help create some jobs. I think most people would prefer to have high employment and pay a bit more for things than have Wal*marts full of super-cheap crap that they can barely afford on their welfare checks. |
Posted by: rjschwarz 2017-01-30 11:49 |
#5 The $60B/year that stays in the US will add 600,000 jobs. |
Posted by: Guillibaldo Stalin4227 2017-01-30 10:59 |
#4 Or georgia, south carolina |
Posted by: chris 2017-01-30 10:43 |
#3 He needs to visit the closed textile mills in Alabama. |
Posted by: Deacon Blues 2017-01-30 07:59 |
#2 Raise prices - yes Cost jobs - maybe in the import-export paper shuffling, but will also create jobs that actually make things that people want. The trade off is who's still collecting welfare support and who's now working. |
Posted by: Procopius2k 2017-01-30 07:56 |
#1 the facts clearly show that NAFTA has delivered enormous economic benefits to the citizens of my home state Why, the rape kit industry is booming! Not to mention the auto body repair industry, and the alcohol distributors! |
Posted by: Rob Crawford 2017-01-30 07:08 |