{"id":16597,"date":"2018-03-06T16:01:15","date_gmt":"2018-03-06T21:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/live-immigrationreform.pantheonsite.io\/?p=16597"},"modified":"2018-12-28T10:46:55","modified_gmt":"2018-12-28T15:46:55","slug":"will-immigration-concerns-addressed-nafta-will-swamp-forces-prevail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.immigrationreform.com\/2018\/03\/06\/will-immigration-concerns-addressed-nafta-will-swamp-forces-prevail\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Immigration Concerns Be Addressed in NAFTA or Will Swamp Forces Prevail?"},"content":{"rendered":"
President Trump signaled<\/a> yesterday that he is open to dropping his newly announced tariffs on steel and aluminum imports if the U.S. successfully renegotiates the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico and Canada. \u201cWe have large trade deficits with Mexico and Canada. NAFTA, which is under renegotiation right now, has been a bad deal for U.S.A. Massive relocation of companies & jobs. Tariffs on Steel and Aluminum will only come off if new & fair NAFTA agreement is signed,\u201d Trump tweeted<\/a>.<\/p>\n NAFTA \u2013 which went into effect in 1994 and is currently being renegotiated by U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer \u2013 eliminated most tariffs on trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. The trade agreement also created a little-known visa program<\/a> that allows foreign workers to take high-paying professional jobs in America.<\/p>\n Under NAFTA, the TN visa program permits<\/a> Canadian and Mexican nationals to reside in the U.S. for three years and renew that status an unlimited number of times. Unlike other high-skilled visa programs, the TN visa program contains no protections for American workers.<\/strong> It is estimated that almost 100,000<\/a> TN visa holders are currently working in the U.S. in 63 highly competitive professions, including doctors, lawyers, dentists, and engineers.<\/p>\n Even though the TN visa program does not comport with President Trump\u2019s policy of \u201cBuy American, Hire American<\/a>,\u201d reports have surfaced that Lighthizer is not addressing it in negotiations, and administration officials who urged him to have been sidelined.<\/p>\n