NAFTA negotiations enter day #4 today.  The final Round 1 summary day is tomorrow, Sunday.   Information as to specifics is hard to find.  Much of the ongoing negotiation is clouded in secrecy.
However, that said, one of CTH mouses (with wolverine teeth) shares a negotiation aspect that drew a great deal of conseternation from the Mexico and Canada side.
The issue revolves around government contracts, specifically U.S. federal contracts for goods and services.  President Trump has initiated a “Buy American, Hire American” policy for government contracts; meaning if the U.S. government has to spend money for a product or service, it should be spent on acquisition of American products made by American workers.
Mexico and Canada want access to these lucrative contracts.  President Trump’s “America First” procurement process is against their interest.  Canada is especially upset about this dynamic.  Canada wants to be able to bid on U.S. Federal Government contracts; and Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland referred to the buy-local rules as “poor public policy.”
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Day two of Round One NAFTA negotiations continued today.
Round one is scheduled to run through Sunday August 20th.   Generally speaking the key negotiators are not presenting too much public information as the larger objectives of the first round are structured around the bigger issues of the agreement itself, and not the individual economic sectors which follow.
The potential for an agreement still appears around a level “3” on a ten point scale.
On the positive side for those who follow the U.S. Trade Team, you might enjoy hearing that the crony-capitalistic lobbying group, The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has been significantly reduced.  U.S. CoC President Tom Donohue attempts to put his best face forward amid his diminished ability to influence actual policy:
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You can call this.. well, wait,… first we need the context….

President Trump, DHS and ICE have been cracking down on illegal aliens. As a consequence, in June of this year 884 illegal aliens fled the U.S. for asylum in Canada.  A month later, in July, that number skyrocketed over four hundred percent to more than 3,100. And now in the first two weeks of August it has doubled again to more than 3,800 flooding into Canada through August 15th. At this rate August will see over 7,000 illegal aliens fleeing the U.S. for safe-harbor in Canada.

Yes, we can officially call this supermagawonder-winning.   Heck, if we wait a little longer, pretty soon Canada might be paying us to build the Southern Border Wall.

TORONTO/MONTREAL (Reuters) – The number of asylum seekers who illegally crossed the U.S. border into Canada more than tripled last month, according to Canadian government data released on Thursday, as migrants worried about the U.S. administration’s immigration crackdown head north.

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Based entirely on what can be pulled from Government Accounts and media interviews of the participants involved in NAFTA negotiations, I’m going to try and summarize each day as it can be determined through those sources.
Additionally, for those who might be interested in a perspective I’m going to give a rating of my confidence that a tri-national agreement is possible.
On a scale of zero to 10 – where zero is NAFTA will dissolve and parties will be at irreconcilable differences, and 10 is confidence an agreement will be reached, at the end of Day #1, today, I’d asses the likelihood of an agreement at “3”.
Outlook not too good.
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I find it interesting that Chinese TV is more interested in NAFTA renegotiation than most U.S., Canada or Mexico media.  Against the backdrop of China exploiting NAFTA as a backdoor into the U.S. market we accept this disparate level of interest is not accidental. China is specifically the “third party dumper” mentioned by Robert Lighthizer.
The negotiations can have as many as six rounds; each round lasting 5 days; two rounds in each nation, over the course of three months, with each round tackling a different economic sector.
It is also entirely possible they could also end sooner, much sooner.
The introductory remarks by Trade representatives from Canada, Mexico and the U.S. can be considerably enlightening for those who review the transparent political agendas behind the trade discussions.  I have a spidey sense these first round negotiations might not even make it to Sunday.
In the video below it is interesting to watch Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, outline her priorities (also here in more detail).  Ms. Freeland gives her remarks in English, Spanish and French.  If you can watch Freeland without A.) Laughing hysterically, or B.) punching your TV/Computer screen, well, you’re Job.
Through Ms. Freedlan’s leadership – Canada is focused on ensuring a “progressive trade agenda”.  She is demanding a focus on LGBTQ, and specifically transgender rights in the trade deal, in addition to cultural sensitivity aspects, and climate change. Go figure.
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The first round of new NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) negotiations begins today in Washington DC.  The U.S., Canada and Mexico begin the task of renegotiating a trade deal originally established in 1995. There are trillions of dollars in trade being discussed, and more substantively the basic principles behind a tri-lateral trade deal that has compromised U.S. economic growth are being reformatted and reestablished.
Most of the media presentations on the substantive issues are framed in falsehoods, deception and many outright lies.  The advancement of multinational corporations, and multinational financial constructs has eliminated the historic reference points still being used by the media to mislead the average consumer – EXPLAINED HERE –
NAFTA was/is a highly political trade deal that has severely compromised U.S. workers and U.S. manufacturers.  There may be as many as six rounds of negotiations as each economic sector is addressed.  However, the first round is essentially to establish the principles of priority for each trade nation.  Against the backdrop of America as the worlds largest economy and market, the entire globe is watching to see the outcome.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer delivers his opening remarks (video and transcript below).

This morning, @USTradeRep Ambassador Robert Lighthizer delivered an opening statement at the first round of #NAFTA renegotiations. pic.twitter.com/8h21Ednskf

— Department of State (@StateDept) August 16, 2017

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AMBASSADOR ROBERT LIGHTHIZER – This is an historic day for the United States. Today, for the first time, we will start negotiating to revise a major free trade agreement. American politicians have been promising to renegotiate NAFTA for years, but today President Trump is going to fulfill those promises.
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Forget the social chaff and political countermeasures being promoted in the media. It is all manufactured distraction.  It’s MONEY that matters to the powerful interests in the upper suites of the corporate media apparatus.

Everything, e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g, every story, is circling the upcoming economic and financial trade confrontations.  There are trillions at stake and President Donald Trump is facing off against the international “BIG CLUB”.  The purchased multinational political entities who operate within the massive and institutional multinational corporate and financial networks behind the World Bank and World Trade Organization.
NAFTA re-negotiations are set to begin in Washington DC this coming Wednesday. President Trump is meeting with Trade Team U.S.A tonight.

♦ Last week Mexico’s Economic Minister Ildefonso Guajardo threatened to flood the U.S. with illegal aliens, South American gangs and massive illegal drugs shipments if the U.S. doesn’t keep favor with Mexico in the trilateral trade deal. –LINK–

♦ Now today, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland states that Canada will walk away from re-negotiated NAFTA if Chapter 19 trade dispute resolutions are not retained. –LINK–

What Canada seeks to keep is a dispute mechanism that specifically politicizes the NAFTA trade resolution process.  Chapter 19 establishes a bi-national panel who make binding decisions on complaints about illegal subsidies, dumping, manipulation of trade and possible countervailing duties.
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President Trump uses economic leverage as a national security policy; and to understand who opposes President Trump specifically because of the economic leverage he creates, it becomes important to understand the objectives of the global and financial elite who run and operate the institutions.  The Big Club.
Understanding how trillions of trade dollars influence geopolitical policy we begin to understand the three-decade global financial construct they seek to protect.
That is: global financial exploitation of national markets:

♦Multinational corporations purchase controlling interests in various national elements of developed industrial western nations.
♦The Multinational Corporations making the purchases are underwritten by massive global financial institutions, multinational banks.

♦The Multinational Banks and the Multinational Corporations then utilize lobbying interests to manipulate the internal political policy of the targeted nation state(s).
♦With control over the targeted national industry or interest, the multinationals then leverage export of the national asset (exfiltration) through trade agreements structured to the benefit of lesser developed nation states – where they have previously established a proactive financial footprint.

Against the backdrop of President Trump confronting China (tomorrow), and against the backdrop of NAFTA being renegotiated starting Wednesday, revisiting the economic influences within the import/export dynamic will help conceptualize the issues at the heart of the matter.  There are a myriad of interests within each trade sector that make specific explanation very challenging; however, here’s the basic outline.
For three decades economic “globalism” has advanced, quickly. Everyone accepts this statement, yet few actually stop to ask who and what are behind this – and why?
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Today Secretary of State Rex Tillerson highlighted events over the past six months.  T-Rex takes another stroll around the globe discussing regional policy, specific state policy, and ongoing challenges.  Secretary Tillerson then takes questions from the media at the conclusion of his remarks.
Very informative. Very well worth watching (T-Rex Begins at 03:40):

If you alert your family not to schedule anything important on round-one NAFTA days, well, you might just be a trade and economics nerd.  LOL  Seriously, this is one of the biggest economic processes that falls almost exclusively outside of the reach of lobbyists.
And within this entire NAFTA trade construct there is little to zero downside to walking away. If Team Trump don’t get what they want from a completely reworked trilateral agreement, they can always just eliminate NAFTA and work on bilateral agreements with Mexico and Canada as individual trade partners. Team USA hold all the leverage.  

USTR is anticipating seven rounds of talks which will take place at three week intervals.
The first round is scheduled for August 16th through 20th in Washington DC.

Washington, D.C. – United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer today announced arrangements for the first round of negotiations for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
The first round of the negotiations between the United States, Canada and Mexico will take place in Washington, D.C. from August 16 – 20, 2017.
The negotiations immediately follows the 90-day consultation period with Congress and the public initiated on May 18, 2017. On that day, Ambassador Lighthizer notified Congress of President Trump’s intent to renegotiate NAFTA to get a better deal for America’s workers, farmers, businesses and manufacturers.

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