Sen. Barrasso on NAFTA 2.0: 'I would rather it not come to Congress'

摘要

A top Senate Republican on May 21 said he wants the administration to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement in a way that does not require congressional approval, endorsing a so-called "skinny" deal. "I would rather it not come to Congress," said Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), who chairs the Republican Policy Committee, told CNBC. "There's ways that [U.S. Trade Representative Robert] Lighthizer has to do kind of a NAFTA-lite if you will, without needing to go to Congress." "The question is, 'How can NAFTA be changed to our advantage, that doesn't have to go back to Congress to get another vote?'" he continued. "To try and get this passed through Congress is a lot of heavy lifting and most people in Congress and certainly on the Republican side and the trader side would say let's leave it as it is. If you can work around the edges to improve it for the United States, absolutely do that."