Tony's corner
NAFTA: North America's "Fake" Trump Agenda
Last month I discussed the importance of NAFTA. I men-
tioned how the U.S. imposing tariffs on three paper mills
here would cost 1,000 jobs in the state of Maine. Such are
the complexities of this agreement. But as I delved further
into how it might affect our printing industry, I came across
another overriding factor. Keeping track of Donald Trump’s
lies about NAFTA is absolutely exhausting. It really is. So
I’m going to relay a few facts (yes, facts), as opposed to his
rhetorical talking points, as heated negotiations between
the three countries continue.
Trumpism: He said that NAFTA was to blame for high U.S.
unemployment.
Fact: At the same time, he bragged that the U.S. unemploy-
ment rate of 4.2% is the lowest in 16 years.
Trumpism: Candidate Trump said he would rip up NAFTA.
“We saved as much as eight hours/day just in
order input, tracking, and managerial tasks.”
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Fact: There are literally tens of thousands of American
voters whose jobs depend on NAFTA – including in the
majority of states that voted for him.
Trumpism: NAFTA is to blame for the loss of U.S. manu-
facturing jobs.
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Fact: U.S. factories today produce about twice as much as
they did in the mid-1980s before NAFTA was negotiated.
And on, and on, and on!
All that said, yes, some workers lose and some win with
any trade agreement. And yes, the 25-year-old pact should
be re-negotiated to bring it inline with today’s economic
realities. But just about every fiscal expert here and south
of the border, regardless of political preference, agrees on
one thing – tearing it up or changing it significantly would
be disastrous for the economies of all three countries.
Fortunately, Trump appears to have backed down from
trashing NAFTA. At press time, however, Canada’s nego-
tiators were frustrated with what they called America’s
“winner take all” attitude. Sound familiar? I wish I could tell
you more, but until final agreements are made, we’re in
limbo as to how it will affect our industry. And Trump’s
meandering rhetoric doesn’t help.
When it comes to trade deals, I hope the U.S. President
can remember (he’s already told us how incredibly smart
he is) the words of Sir Isaac Newton as he explained his
third law of physics: “Every action has an equal and oppos-
ite reaction.” Oh and Donald, that’s Isaac Newton, not Cam
Newton (quarterback for the Carolina Panthers).
Until next time, always remember that we’re here to help.
Tony Curcio
Editor, Graphic Arts Magazine
[email protected]
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8 | November 2017 | GRAPHIC ARTS MAGAZINE
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