Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and 20 Senate Democrats are urging the Trump administration to strengthen and better enforce environmental standards during the upcoming Joint Review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
The senators say since the USMCA's enactment, outsourcing to Mexico has continued, U.S. manufacturing jobs have declined, and the trade deficit with both Mexico and Canada has gone up.
“As the Joint Review of the USMCA approaches, we urge you to significantly strengthen the environmental chapter and ensure its robust enforcement. We agree with you that ‘a rubberstamp of the Agreement is not in the national interest.’ The current environmental chapter enables environmental arbitrage, which puts U.S. businesses and workers at a disadvantage, encourages offshoring, and threatens our clean air and water. It has also never been adequately enforced. Strengthening the environmental chapter cannot be done by the Administration alone – it will require Congressional action – and we stand ready to work with you,” wrote the senators.
They say the Joint Review will present an opportunity to improve the agreement to better support job creation and economic growth, boost clean manufacturing in the U.S. and take steps to tackle the climate crisis.
(Photo by Sergei GAPON / AFP via Getty Images)
Photo: SERGEI GAPON / AFP / Getty Images