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Democrats lead the way on trade

WASHINGTON — House Democrats have reached a tentative agreement with labor leaders and the White House over a rewrite of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal that has been a top priority for President Donald Trump.

“I’m hearing very good things, including from unions and others that it’s looking good. I hope they put it up to a vote, and if they put it up to a vote, it’s going to pass,” Trump said Monday. “I’m hearing a lot of strides have been made over the last 24 hours, with unions and others.”

“We’re close. We’re not quite finished yet. We’re within range,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Monday night. She briefed lawmakers on the negotiations earlier in the evening and said more meetings would follow Tuesday.

“We’re at a moment of truth,” Pelosi said.

The tentative accord was revealed by a Democratic aide not authorized to discuss the talks and granted anonymity because the agreement is not official.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., credited Pelosi for building consensus among Democrats for the looming agreement, which could be announced as early as Tuesday.

Details still need to be finalized and the U.S. Trade Representative will need to submit the implementing legislation to Congress. No vote has been scheduled.

The trade agreement is one item of many of the congressional to-do list, including a government-wide funding package and an annual defense policy measure that has been broadened to include a new 12-week parental leave benefit for federal employees.

“We’re trying to move everything along. We have a lot to do before we leave,” Pelosi said as she left the Capitol Monday. “And appropriations is the central thing.”

The new, long-sought trade agreement with Mexico and Canada would give both Trump and his top adversary, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a major accomplishment despite the turmoil of his likely impeachment.

The new trade pact would replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement, which eliminated most tariffs and other trade barriers involving the United States, Mexico and Canada. Critics, including Trump, labor unions and many Democratic lawmakers, branded NAFTA a job killer for America because it encouraged factories to move south of the border, capitalize on low-wage Mexican workers and ship products back to the U.S. duty free.

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