While there are things in NAFTA that can stand tweaking, unilateral abandonment isn’t one of them. Canadian small industry paid heavily for NAFTA. Many US suppliers of goods to Canada went from maintaining a Canadian presence to support their sales in Canada, to operating out of the back of a semi. The Canadian Niagara peninsula and the New York Niagara frontier was devastated by NAFTA. It hasn’t recovered, especially the American side. This was due to the practices of American companies, BTW.
The US record on adherence to NAFTA has never been exemplary, in any case. The US already has a history of protectionism in NAFTA.
A key point – pull NAFTA apart, and jobs will flow not only to Mexico, but way offshore in any case. NAFTA keeps some at least in North America.
Prime Minister Harper has already advised Clinton and Obama that unilaterally pulling apart NAFTA may result in the unilateral Canadian review of the US-Canada oil supply deal. Its instructive to remember the oil is on the Canadian side of the border…
