WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump ‌said on Wednesday that he might not renew ⁠the USMCA free trade deal with Canada and Mexico. Speaking at the White House, ‌the ⁠president said he was discussing the ⁠matter with Mexican and Canadian ⁠leaders.

Reporting by Bo Erickson ⁠and Gram Slattery; Editing by Doina Chiacu

archive.org archive link: https://web.archive.org/save/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Fworld%2Ftrump-says-he-might-not-renew-usmca-2026-06-10%2F

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[–] marxismtomorrow@lemmy.today 1 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

In this instance, I agree with the affectation he has decided to cosplay for entirely different reasons against the advice of all of his corporate masters.

When you buy from a foreign country what can be made in your country, you are directly causing the loss of well-paid jobs in your country, and aiding the exploitation of a developing country (statistically.)

There's a reason China has done so well while the entirety of the western world has become worse for the average inhabitant. Every time a job is outsourced, every time you buy that foreign thing that could've been made at home, you are directly enriching another country and that money will never be seen in your country ever again. You do that enough times and hey, you have stretches of countryside full of small ghost towns that decayed after the employer had to shut down, and no social mobility.

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago) (1 children)

One could argue, but it'd basically be repeating all the same free trade debates that have happened in the past. Anyone unfamiliar with the usual counterargument can search "balance of payments" or "comparative advantage". TL;DR, it has to do with how those Canadian dollars you spent on whatever exporter eventually come back to the mint.

What might be news to people, since you mentioned it, is that China's had a more severe K-shaped economy since about 2000. Sure, they have manufacturing jobs... that you'll never, ever work your way out of. And then a few million people out of 1.5 billion who have the connections, and can afford a Western-ish style of living.

[–] marxismtomorrow@lemmy.today 3 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

Except the purpose isn't social mobility for most Chinese people. Remember the '躺平' 'lie flat' propaganda movement the west loved talking about a few years ago? Yeah that wasn't new, or temporary, nor did it ever go away (and no it's not illegal). That's just how most Chinese people have been seeing life after getting up to 'western' standards (I would argue a roof, consistent meals, cheap electronics, and free healthcare is closer to the western standard than not, and that covers ~900 million people.) Yes there is a rising upper middle and upper class, but also the living standards of the bottom 50% are better than more than 150 countries and that's rising just about as quickly.

These facts skew the traditional western reporting of economic health, because western economists assume everyone wants to grow infinitely, and that's just not the case.

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 0 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 57 minutes ago) (2 children)

Suuure. Chinese people enjoy the fact that all the money is going to their rich. /s

and [lower income Chinese standards are] rising just about as quickly.

No, they're not, that's what K-shaped means.

[–] grey_maniac@lemmy.ca 1 points 37 minutes ago

would either of you care to share unbiased evidence supporting your statements?

[–] marxismtomorrow@lemmy.today 1 points 41 minutes ago

Suuure. Chinese people enjoy the fact that all the money is going to their rich. /s

Not what I said, I did say they enjoy owning their own home, basically ensuring they will never be homeless since there's no property taxes after the property is purchased, and they do enjoy the welfare system that allows them to eat and enjoy their free time regardless of their current employment status.

No, they’re not, that’s what K-shaped means.

Then whatever propaganda rag you got your information from is outdated as of 2023, but I think you kinda know that.