A wise person once said that there are no coincidences in Washington. That assertion has never been truer than today. Why would Democrats unveil two articles of impeachment and then head straight for the microphones to discuss their support for an historic trade deal with Mexico and Canada? Political coincidence or strategic gamesmanship?
Timing Is Everything
In a news conference on Dec. 10, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) made a vigorous attempt to take control of the USMCA trade agreement narrative. Her message is that the original Trump deal was just chump change, and now that the AFL-CIO and other Dems have gotten their mitts on it, the agreement that will render NAFTA obsolete is oh so much better. So good, asserted Pelosi, that the Democratic caucus is ready to sign on the dotted line.
Could this perchance have been an effort to subdue news of the impeachment articles drawn up against the president in the current 24-hour news cycle?
Ding! Ding! Ding!
Even the least astute of those watching the extravaganza of clowns, entertainers, and acrobats under the Swamp big top should be suspicious of such a happy coincidence. Ever since Donald Trump vanquished the “most qualified” female candidate in American history, it’s been one breathless attack on the president after another – culminating in impeachment. Meanwhile, the USMCA has been lingering on the backbench. All this time, Trump has been begging the Dems to sign a new and improved trade agreement. Why the holdup? Democrats always champion themselves as the party of labor; their rank and file benefit from this agreement.
The timing of Pelosi’s announcement in support of the languishing trade deal is political charade of the highest order. In a breathtaking about-face, Pelosi boldly took credit for USMCA. “There is no question, of course, that this trade agreement is much better than NAFTA," the House Speaker asserted to a room full of cameras and reporters.
Speaking of timing, while Pelosi & Company have been playing politics with the trade deal, the delay “has cost the economy billions of dollars,” according to Commerce Secretary Wilber Ross. And the Dems managed to string this deal out until there was very little time left on the clock. Congress has a whole 14 days left on the congressional calendar before the buzzer sounds. “It’s time to pay attention to something that really helps everyday Americans instead of having these silly hearings,” Ross told Fox News.
Ya think?
So, the Dems want their cake and a cherry on top. By all means, impeach, but in case that gets some of their members in hot political waters, they have a fallback position. “Look what we’ve done for you” is the narrative.
Anyone with two brain cells knows the USMCA was a Trump deal, from beginning to end, that will stoke an already fired-up economy. And try as the Dems might to reap kudos for this trade agreement, the American people aren’t as stupid as the Democrats believe. In the end, their political shenanigans will only serve to help re-elect the president in the Roaring ‘20s of the 21st century.
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Read more from Leesa K. Donner.
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