ICYMI: Politico Morning Trade: New Dems' Trade Agenda
The New Democrat Coalition Unveils Trade Agenda for First 100 Days
The New Democrat Coalition (NDC) released its First 100 Day Agenda to take actionable steps to end the pandemic, create jobs, and solve the challenges of the 21st century. The NDC will fight for durable progress on our nation’s most pressing issues, including ending the pandemic, spurring equitable economic growth and opportunities, tackling climate change, modernizing our infrastructure, protecting and expanding affordable health care, restoring global leadership, defending our democracy, and building a fair and inclusive immigration system.
As reported in Politico’s Morning Trade:
NEW DEMS’ TRADE AGENDA: Centrist Democrats have outlined their priorities for the early days of the Biden administration and among them is a “return to rules-based trade policy that works for American workers, farmers, and businesses.” That means a departure from the Trump administration’s “unpredictably used tariffs” and “mini deals,” explained Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.), chair of the New Democrats Coalition.
Within the First 100 Day Agenda, the NDC outlines how it will fight to restore American global leadership and promote its trade agenda in the 117th Congress. The NDC believes the United States must recommit multilateralism and return to rules-based trade policy that benefits American workers, farmers, and businesses.
Read the NDC’s full 100 Day Agenda, one-pager, and statements of support. Read more in Politico Morning Trade or below.
QUICK FIX
— The New Democrats want a “return to rules-based trade policy.” The coalition’s chair says that does not include Trump-style tariffs.
DRIVING THE DAY
NEW DEMS’ TRADE AGENDA: Centrist Democrats have outlined their priorities for the early days of the Biden administration and among them is a “return to rules-based trade policy that works for American workers, farmers, and businesses.” That means a departure from the Trump administration’s “unpredictably used tariffs” and “mini deals,” explained Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.), chair of the New Democrat Coalition.
“We have an opportunity for congressional engagement on policy. We have an opportunity to work in a multilateral way, which I think is very important, especially as we address issues like China,” she said in an interview.
Former President Donald Trump’s tariffs alienated trading partners and hurt a number of U.S. businesses — including a now-closed aluminum smelter in DelBene’s district, she contends. And while she didn’t call for Biden to scrap the tariffs, instead applauding his pledge to review them, she asserted that taking on China’s harmful trade practices requires action in tandem with other countries. “We need trade policy, not tariff policy,” she said.
Trade enthusiasts have expressed concern that a Democratic split over free trade will make deals more difficult in a narrowly divided congress. The party’s progressive wing, in its own 2021 priorities, derided “corporate-driven trade agreements” that have led to “a race to the bottom in global wages and working conditions.” But DelBene points to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement as proof that Democrats can work through ideological differences to produce a deal that uplifts workers and the environment. “That sets a template for how we can move forward on other agreements,” DelBene said.
By: Steven Overly
Source: Politico Morning Trade
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