In the true spirit of a game show host, which is what he really is, Donald Trump is saying, deal or no deal!
The ink wasn’t even dry on the signatures on the USMCA trade deal before serious doubts arose about whether the deal would ever be ratified.
READ MORE: Newly-signed USMCA points at increased auto imports, watered-down LGBTQ protections
Trump is threatening to kill the current NAFTA deal, which would set the clock running on a six-month window for the U.S. Congress either to ratify the USMCA deal as is or have no North American trade deal at all.
Trump is obviously applying pressure to the soon-to-be Democrat-dominated Congress to cave in and give him his trade deal victory, but cancelling NAFTA could actually backfire.
WATCH BELOW: Trump does not expect Congress to push back on trade deal
Many Democrats don’t like the new USMCA deal, but they weren’t happy with the NAFTA deal, either. They could care less if both deals disappear, so Trump doesn’t really have the political leverage that he thinks he has.
But, while Trump and Congress are playing political chicken, Canada could well be collateral damage in this conflict.
The elimination of both trade deals could expose Canada to more tariffs and import quotas and could send us back to square one with our largest trading partner. You don’t need to be an economic genius to understand how problematic that could be to a fragile Canadian economy.
Bill Kelly is the host of the Bill Kelly Show on Global News Radio 900 CHML.
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