NAFTA gets White House reprieve, for now

President Donald Trump is not ready to demolish the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) just yet. The White House announced late Wednesday the president assured the leaders of Canada and Mexico he’s willing to renegotiate the deal. If he can’t get what he considers better terms for American interests, the president reiterated his willingness to terminate the agreement. During the campaign, Trump called NAFTA a “disaster.” Earlier Wednesday, White House officials said Trump was considering an executive order to scrap the trade deal, a move analysts now describe as a bluff designed to bring Canada and Mexico to the negotiating table. The Trump administration has not offered any timetable for talks with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. But both leaders issued statements Wednesday confirming their conversations with Trump and their willingness to consider changes to the decades-old agreement.