Oregon Democratic Representative Peter DeFazio was the only member of the state’s delegation who voted against the new trade deal with Canada and Mexico this week.
He says he thinks it’s better than the original NAFTA, but it is not a model for future agreements. He says labor enforcements are still weak in the new agreement. Also,
“It does nothing on the environment. It’s virtually identical to the Clinton NAFTA on the environment, more than 20 years ago. No consideration of climate change and no real enforcement of pollution.”
DeFazio says many U.S. companies moved to Mexico after NAFTA originally passed to take advantage of the country’s less stringent pollution laws. He says he could not in good faith support the bill.