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As the presidents of two border-state chambers of commerce, we know firsthand of the power of the North American Free Trade Agreement. NAFTA is an indispensable component of our states鈥� economic prosperity.

Not surprisingly, our states鈥� international neighbors represent our largest trading partners. And for each of us, the other NAFTA partner country is our second-largest export market.

For Arizona and Michigan, and for so many states, NAFTA means jobs. Nationally, 14 million jobs are tied to trade with M茅xico and Canada. In Arizona, the total is more than 200,000; in Michigan, it鈥檚 nearly 400,000.

Which is why President Trump鈥檚 rhetoric over trade and his threats to exit NAFTA are both troubling and perplexing.

Troubling because throughout its nearly 25-year history, NAFTA has fueled economic growth in our states, growing jobs here while preventing entire supply chains from migrating overseas to regions like Asia.

Perplexing because cutting off U.S. manufacturers鈥� access to foreign markets and increasing the costs of everyday products here at home runs completely counter to the administration鈥檚 stated goal of achieving 3 percent economic growth. While we share the president鈥檚 position on the need to reform our tax code and reduce job creators鈥� regulatory burden, making trade more cumbersome and expensive is a recipe for economic malaise, an opinion shared by over 80 percent of economists in a recent Wall Street Journal survey, who believe a NAFTA exit would result in an economic slowdown.

The anti-NAFTA position is also strange for a president who not only won our states in the 2016 election, but whose victory hinged on winning Michigan. Pursuing a policy that harms the very voters who tipped the scales in your favor is hardly the foundation for re-election.

The connections of our states鈥� economies with Canada and M茅xico run deep, making us more competitive against foreign competition and proving the difference between adding jobs and shedding them.

For example, electric car manufacturer Lucid Motors cited its forthcoming Arizona factory鈥檚 proximity to Mexico and the highly integrated cross-border automotive supply chain as a reason for the company鈥檚 $700 million investment in the state.

In Michigan, the Detroit metro area alone is an international export powerhouse, sending $15 billion worth of exports marked 鈥淢ade in the USA鈥� to Canada and $17 billion worth to M茅xico in 2015. That鈥檚 two-thirds of the state鈥檚 exports.

In fact, an analysis by the credit ratings agency Fitch finds that Michigan has the most to lose if NAFTA is dismantled. Michigan鈥檚 exports account for 7.4 percent of its gross state product, which Fitch says leaves the state 鈥渦niquely exposed鈥� if the agreement were unwound.

It's easy to see why the potential for dramatic job losses looms large. Cross-border trade has now reached $1.2 trillion a year for the U.S., M茅xico and Canada, an astonishing $3.3 billion a day, making NAFTA the world鈥檚 largest 鈥� and most consequential 鈥� trade bloc.

While we are staunch advocates for NAFTA, we are not satisfied with the status quo. We believe strongly that an agreement that came into force in 1994 ought to be updated to reflect the realities of today鈥檚 economy. A NAFTA that was negotiated in the dial-up age should be modernized for a broadband world.

The renegotiations underway between the three NAFTA parties present an opportunity to streamline overly complicated customs regulations, guard intellectual property, protect investors鈥� interests in dispute proceedings, and recognize electronic commerce.

The administration should not, however, approach a renegotiation as a chance to exact some sort of punitive trade agenda against our partners. Rather, we should be guided first and foremost by the goal to do no harm to an agreement that is a cornerstone of all three nations鈥� continued prosperity.

The stakes are high for our border states as we craft a new NAFTA with our friends and neighbors. If the administration embraces the opportunity to modernize the agreement, Michigan and Arizona will emerge even stronger. But if the U.S. walks away from NAFTA, the effects will be devastating.

By:

Richard K. Studley is the president and CEO of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce.
Glenn Hamer is the president and CEO of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Real Clear Politics

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2017/11/15/for_border_states_michigan_and_arizona_nafta_is_essential_135551.html