Trump Ramps Up the Canada Trade Threats

President Donald Trump has turned up the volume on his threats to exclude Canada in a new NAFTA trade pact between the U.S. and Mexico.

In a tweet on Saturday, Trump accused Canada of unspecified “decades of abuse” under the current trilateral North American Free Trade Agreement. He added that there is “no political necessity” for including Canada in a deal.

Trump also warned Congress not to interfere with his administration’s negotiations,. If it does, he says, “I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely and we will be far better off.”

That threat appears to undermine a letter Trump sent to Congress on Friday announcing that he plans to sign a bilateral NAFTA replacement with Mexico in 90 days.

The formal notice also requires the Trump administration to provide a full text of such an agreement within 30 days. That deadline gives U.S. and Canadian negotiators several more weeks in which to reach an accord.

Bloomberg News says trade envoys from both sides insist progress is being made. They plan to meet on Wednesday to continue their talks. Business groups and members of Congress have indicated they would oppose any final agreement that does not include Canada.