Trump Administration to Explore Updates to Every US Trade Deal, Spicer Says

The Trump administration will examine possible improvements to all existing U.S. trade deals, including those with Trans-Pacific Partnership nations, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Jan. 31 during a press briefing (here). “You would examine those to see if we can improve upon them and then look at the other countries in there and see if there's a willingness to engage with some of those other countries,” he said. Of the 11 current TPP nations, Australia, Chile, Canada, Mexico, Peru and Singapore currently have free trade agreements with the U.S. Spicer said Senate confirmation of President Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer, would be an important first step before the administration starts its evaluation of current trade deals. The Finance Committee has not scheduled a confirmation hearing for Lighthizer yet, and is reviewing whether he might need a waiver absolving him of any non-compliance of past trade representation he performed on behalf of the Brazilian government with a statute that prevents the USTR from having represented foreign governments in trade matters, a committee majority spokeswoman said last week (see 1701250061).