It isn't easy in the year 2019 to have smiles on the faces of union leaders, but, Congressional Democrats did exactly that.
Democrats – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) (click here) is also having a good day. Democrats get to show America that they are capable of doing things beyond impeachment. They also wielded a lot of leverage during the negotiations, forcing Trump -- as well as Mexico -- to accept more stringent enforcement of labor rights in the final deal. Pelosi is touting that Democrats helped make the deal “infinitely better,” a play to her base.
Labor – Labor unions, especially AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, really pushed hard here. Trump’s top trade negotiator consulted them frequently during the original USMCA deal in 2018, and unions stood their ground in 2019 to force even more favorable provisions to ensure U.S. jobs don’t flee quickly to Mexico. The result is USMCA is expected to create 176,000 new jobs in the United States and labor rights are poised to expand in Mexico. A committee will monitor Mexico’s progress and if the nation fails to achieve certain benchmarks, there will be punitive action.
US Unions are vital to the American Middle Class. I know for a fact they were involved with this trade agreement as they held public awareness initiatives through digital media. The union leaders in the USA made a difference. This is what it is all about, the Middle Class has its champions.
