How Trump’s Wall Makes Nafta Talks Even Thornier: QuickTake Q&A

The North American Free Trade Agreement was negotiated 25 years ago and has been a lightning rod for criticism ever since. Even as the U.S., Canada and Mexico were finalizing the deal in 1992, Ross Perot warned of a "giant sucking sound" that would drag American jobs into the land of the peso. Now President Donald Trump, in some ways the inheritor of Perot’s insurgent political movement, vows to get the deal rewritten, or else. Exactly what changes he seeks is as yet unclear. So is whether Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto will open talks as long as Trump promises a border wall built on his nation’s tab.

Trump has derided Nafta as the "single worst trade deal" in U.S. history but has been light on specifics. He told reporters on Monday that the U.S. will be "tweaking" the deal with relation to Canada but will seek to remedy "an extremely unfair" trade relationship with Mexico, pledging to strike "a fair deal for both parties." He’s said that renegotiation should begin with immigration and border security, though those are peripheral issues to the agreement. His biggest concern seems to be the shift of jobs, especially in the auto industry, to south of the border. He’s threatened a 35 percent tax on General Motors Co. and Toyota Motor Corp’s imports, which would be barred under Nafta as currently written but would make moving jobs to Mexico less profitable for companies.