Former Agriculture Secretaries Push Congress for USMCA Approval

(WASHINGTON, DC) As House Democrats and the Trump administration continue to negotiate the details of a new revised free trade agreement with Mexico and Canada, every Secretary of Agriculture (at USDA) over the past 40 years announced their support for the USMCA. The pact, if agreed to by the United States and Canada, will update the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement. On Thursday, current Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue welcomed John Block (Reagan), Dan Glickman (Clinton), and Tom Vilsack (Obama) to the Whitten Building in Washington for a Press Conference underlining the need for ratification by Congress. Canada and Mexico are the top two largest export markets for U.S. food and agricultural products, totaling more than $39.7 billion in 2018 alone. According to government research, these exports support more than 325,000 American jobs. Mexico has already ratified the agreement. Canada is waiting on the U.S. Congress and has said they’ll ratify once it is signed into law by President Trump. Trade continues in the meantime under the NAFTA pact, though Trump has threatened to pull out of it, if needed, to force Congressional approval.