The White House is reportedly considering drafting an executive order stating its intent to withdraw the United States from the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Two administration officials told Politico Wednesday that a draft of the review is in the final stages, but CNN notes that the president has not made a final decision on whether to proceed with it. Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon are reportedly behind the order.
The order could serve as a renegotiation tactic rather than an outright withdrawal.
A senior White House official would not comment on the report, but instead noted that “NAFTA has obviously been a top priority for the President from Day 1 and it’s safe to say we’ve been working on addressing the issues with it since the beginning.”
Trump said NAFTA has been “a disaster for the United States” during a speech in Kenosha, Wis., last week.
“NAFTA has been very, very bad for our country,” Trump said. “It’s been very, very bad for our companies and for our workers, and we’re going to make some very big changes or we are going to get rid of NAFTA for once and for all. Cannot continue like this, believe me.”
“Big things will be happening on trade with other countries over the coming months, and I mean very big.”
On Monday, Trump announced the U.S. was imposing a 20 percent tariff on all softwood lumber imported from Canada in order to level the playing field for American lumber companies.
“We love Canada, but they have been very good at taking advantage of the United States through NAFTA,” Trump told a group of reporters in the Roosevelt Room. “We are putting a 20 percent tax on lumber coming into the United States from Canada.” (RELATED: Trump Announces 20 Percent Tax On Canadian Softwood Lumber Imports)