WEBVTT - Rep. French Hill Talks Renegotiating USMCA, Limiting Inputs

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, Radio News Center.

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<v Speaker 2>Republicans working on changes to the House GOP tax plan,

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<v Speaker 2>looking to require fewer cuts in Medicaid benefits for the

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<v Speaker 2>poor and disabled, the move aiming to appease members of

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<v Speaker 2>the party worried about public backlash. I'm pleased to say

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<v Speaker 2>the good friend of this program, a good friend of ours.

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<v Speaker 2>The Congressman from Arkansas french Hill joins us now for more. Congressman,

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<v Speaker 2>good to see you, sir Johnathing.

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<v Speaker 1>Great to be with you and Lisa and Anne Marie

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<v Speaker 1>always good to be back in New York.

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<v Speaker 2>Is it turning out to be as much fun as

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<v Speaker 2>you thought it would be? Dani Washington, every day is

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<v Speaker 2>a joy. April second, how much of a joy is

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<v Speaker 2>that going to be?

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<v Speaker 1>I'm just glad it's not April first, because that would even.

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<v Speaker 3>Increase even more.

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<v Speaker 2>What are your constituents telling you about what's hammle ganakud

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<v Speaker 2>saw on the ground.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, look on the relations to tariffs. About thirty percent

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<v Speaker 1>of our output in Arkansas goes to Mexico or Canada,

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<v Speaker 1>and that's food and manufacture goods and back and forth.

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<v Speaker 1>And then you have the North American Free Trader now

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<v Speaker 1>under USMCA that was crafted to make North America the

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<v Speaker 1>destination for manufacturing. So for thirty years it's been knitted together.

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<v Speaker 1>And so I think the first thing that I'm hearing

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<v Speaker 1>is certainty and just lay out the plan on how

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<v Speaker 1>you want to use tariffs to open up more markets

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<v Speaker 1>for Americans, have reciprocity on fairness and certain markets that

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<v Speaker 1>are highly disportionate disportionate treatment like India for example.

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<v Speaker 3>But when it.

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<v Speaker 1>Comes to North America, let's renegotiate USMCA. If you want

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<v Speaker 1>to limit certain inputs from China into Canada, Mexico or

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<v Speaker 1>the United States, you can do that in the agreement.

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<v Speaker 1>Those countries can do that on an input basis. If

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<v Speaker 1>you want to have the American manufactured content higher, you

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<v Speaker 1>could negotiate to do that, as President Trump successfully did

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<v Speaker 1>last time he was president on the North American auto content.

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<v Speaker 3>He got more American content. So I think it's.

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<v Speaker 1>Best to tackle this Canadian and Mexican issue inside a

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<v Speaker 1>new and revised USMCA.

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<v Speaker 4>But USMCA was done under Trump. It replaced NAFTA, So

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<v Speaker 4>you want new SMCA. Part two is do you think

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<v Speaker 4>that's what he's getting at Donald Trump? Here the president

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<v Speaker 4>he's getting at the start bringing those twenty twenty six

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<v Speaker 4>talks up into the mid twenty twenty five.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, potentially, And I think that's not wrong wrong thinking

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<v Speaker 1>on his part. If you're concerned about Chinese dumping through

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<v Speaker 1>transshipment of steel, for example, into Canada or Mexico, let's

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<v Speaker 1>deal with that inside the agreement. Let's have Mexico deal

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<v Speaker 1>with that in their own trade policy on inputs coming

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<v Speaker 1>into the country. Because at the same that's how I

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<v Speaker 1>think you have a more robust, competitive international system where

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<v Speaker 1>manufacturing is at the heart of America. I think President

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<v Speaker 1>Trump strategically in trade diplomacy, I'd like to see more

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<v Speaker 1>things made in America that takes time to do.

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<v Speaker 3>It's not overnight.

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<v Speaker 1>We had steel an aluminum Terrafce, you know, for the

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<v Speaker 1>past five or six years, and they haven't you been

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<v Speaker 1>overnight changes across the across the board.

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<v Speaker 4>Walmart is headquartered in your state. They went to China

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<v Speaker 4>and said, look, we're dealing with tariffs. You're going to

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<v Speaker 4>have to eat some of this costs. And the Chinese

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<v Speaker 4>are saying, no, are you concerned about the cost being

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<v Speaker 4>passed on to consumers?

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<v Speaker 1>I am when I don't know what the strategy is.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the whole point. You have trade diplomacy on

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<v Speaker 1>using trade as a sanctioned potential, like you saw the

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<v Speaker 1>President do on Columbia on repatriation of immigrants. You had

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<v Speaker 1>trade used for reciprocity to bring down actual barriers benefit

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<v Speaker 1>actually both countries potentially over time. And we did that

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<v Speaker 1>successfully for forty years. We did it targeted when I

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<v Speaker 1>was in the White House working during the Bush administration.

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<v Speaker 1>We use Section three oh one to target bad activities

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<v Speaker 1>by principally then Japan to open those markets doing this

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<v Speaker 1>kind of terriff activity and limitation on imports to the US.

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<v Speaker 1>So you can do that in a classic trade diplomacy situation.

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<v Speaker 1>But when you have across the board and not clear

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<v Speaker 1>on what the timeframe is for the increased production of

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<v Speaker 1>the US, I think that's.

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<v Speaker 3>The challenging part.

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<v Speaker 4>But is it your sense when you speak to the

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<v Speaker 4>White House that April second is the start of negotiations

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<v Speaker 4>that at the end of the day, the President is

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<v Speaker 4>a deal maker and wants to get deals done.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, I hear from my colleagues on the House they

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<v Speaker 1>want clarity like the American business once, So you tell US,

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<v Speaker 1>what components and what timeframes you want to do trade diplomacy,

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<v Speaker 1>you want to use reciprocity, you want to protect certain

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<v Speaker 1>industries in the US where you want to have achievable

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<v Speaker 1>gains in production here. But when it comes to autos,

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<v Speaker 1>which is the most important topic of the day, I

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<v Speaker 1>think I think that's best done through advancing changes to

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<v Speaker 1>the USMCA that President Trump led successfully with the Mexicans

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<v Speaker 1>and the Canadians in his first term.

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<v Speaker 4>The Market's also looking for clarity on all of Trump's proposals,

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<v Speaker 4>especially tax cuts. The Senate, the Republicans Eric Wawson are

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<v Speaker 4>reporter Washington, DC, is talking about how they want fewer

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<v Speaker 4>cuts to medicate health benefits for the poor disabled, which

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<v Speaker 4>would be different what the House is talking about. Do

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<v Speaker 4>you think how Republican Senate Republicans can come to an

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<v Speaker 4>agreement on how much can be cut?

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<v Speaker 3>I do. I think we'll come to an agreement. I

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<v Speaker 3>think we can come to an agreement.

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<v Speaker 1>Rather quickly on a joint House and Senate resolution for

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<v Speaker 1>reconciliation so the committees can get to work. And I

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<v Speaker 1>just referred to the Wall Street Journal story today talking

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<v Speaker 1>about duplicate payments in Medicaid across the states and.

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<v Speaker 3>How large that number is.

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<v Speaker 1>House Republicans are looking ways to improve medicaid, focus medicaid

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<v Speaker 1>on the most vulnerable, the young, the poor, the disabled,

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<v Speaker 1>and tried to ring costs out of the systems. Democrats,

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<v Speaker 1>I think, in a political charge, are, well, you're going

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<v Speaker 1>to cut.

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<v Speaker 3>Benefits for medicaid.

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<v Speaker 1>That's an assumption by Democrats politically, well, because the.

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<v Speaker 4>Math doesn't work when you're talking about eight hundred and

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<v Speaker 4>eighty And also that's.

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<v Speaker 3>The charge for the whole committee.

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<v Speaker 4>Right, but most of that money goes to medicare right.

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<v Speaker 1>But look at the numbers, and I think that's what

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<v Speaker 1>the House and Senate want to do. Let's get to

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<v Speaker 1>a Senate resolution and let's let these committees work to

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<v Speaker 1>mark those bills up to fire the savings that we

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<v Speaker 1>can produce.

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<v Speaker 4>Besides the extension of TCJ, what other tax cuts do

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<v Speaker 4>you think are actually feasible. The President has talked about

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<v Speaker 4>no tax on social Security, no tax on tips, just

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<v Speaker 4>this week, no tax on auto loans apparently is being

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<v Speaker 4>thrown out there, and he's flirting with what actually can

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<v Speaker 4>get past.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, this is the beauty of the reconciliation process because

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<v Speaker 1>the President puts his plan out there, his best idea

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<v Speaker 1>is what he wants to try to accomplish, and then

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<v Speaker 1>the House and Senate have to come together and figure

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<v Speaker 1>out what we can do in the context of that

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<v Speaker 1>budget resolution. Can we find the cuts, can we find

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<v Speaker 1>the offset? Do we agree in the House and Senate

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<v Speaker 1>on the economic forecasts? And so I won't pre judge

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<v Speaker 1>what the possibilities are. I just know how hard the

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<v Speaker 1>work is going to be. I want to put an

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<v Speaker 1>emphasis on things that grow the economy. So if we

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<v Speaker 1>have to narrow the focus on of what amount of

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<v Speaker 1>tax cuts we're going to have, what's focus on ones

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<v Speaker 1>that preserve that produce production, more jobs, faster economic growth.

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<v Speaker 3>Do tariffs increase revenues and turbo charge growth? Again, this

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<v Speaker 3>depends on the strategy. Lisa.

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<v Speaker 1>You know you can have an across the board modest

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<v Speaker 1>tariff that might raise revenue and not impact growth economically,

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<v Speaker 1>But what is your goal? Is it reciprocity, is it

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<v Speaker 1>market opening in new countries, is it level of the

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<v Speaker 1>playing field, or is it increasing production in the US?

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<v Speaker 1>Those things are sometimes in conflict.

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<v Speaker 3>What number are you penciling in for the tariff revenue

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<v Speaker 3>to offset some of the cuts.

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<v Speaker 1>Right, So in Congress, we're actually not penciling in tariff

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<v Speaker 1>revenue because it's not accounted by this Congressional Budget Office

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<v Speaker 1>as an offset, which doesn't mean we can't count it.

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<v Speaker 1>Like if there was a strategy and it laid out,

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<v Speaker 1>the two budget committees could agree, we will accept some

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<v Speaker 1>revenue from projected tariffs in the revenue estimates in the

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<v Speaker 1>reconciliation package, but we're not as of now counting that,

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<v Speaker 1>where that's a hypothetical that we're actually not counting on.

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<v Speaker 2>Right, been in touch, I imagine they must have reached

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<v Speaker 2>out to you and other representatives of Arkansas. How upset

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<v Speaker 2>are they about this?

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<v Speaker 1>Well, they want I think so many businesses and they

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<v Speaker 1>report on your broadcast on a regular basis. They can

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<v Speaker 1>live with certain things that they know what the plan is.

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<v Speaker 3>And so Walmart's concerned.

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<v Speaker 1>About the number one thing they think about every single day,

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<v Speaker 1>which is the American family they serve, and they want

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<v Speaker 1>to make sure that that can be done in an

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<v Speaker 1>affordable way.

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<v Speaker 3>That's their goal in life. So this could.

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<v Speaker 1>Interfere with that, but that's we need to wait and

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<v Speaker 1>see what the ultimate goal is.

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<v Speaker 2>Do you think the White House appreciates that because we

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<v Speaker 2>hear this every single day, and we've said on this

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<v Speaker 2>program confidence coming into twenty five with sky high we

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<v Speaker 2>wanted to see that sky high confidence translate into hiring,

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<v Speaker 2>into investment, and the lack of currency. The lack of

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<v Speaker 2>certainty is really how things back, and you see that

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<v Speaker 2>in the sentiment surveys. Now just the White House, in

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<v Speaker 2>your opinion, sort of understand that the lack of certainty,

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<v Speaker 2>the lack of clarity, is holding this economy back.

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<v Speaker 3>That's sorry.

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<v Speaker 1>I think Treasure Secretary percent in a National Economic Council

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<v Speaker 1>leader has to know that they're very experienced in economic

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<v Speaker 1>policy making. And my view is you've got a I

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<v Speaker 1>think clarity about right sizing regulatory costs in the economy.

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<v Speaker 1>You've got clarity about trying to reduce the bureaucracy in

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<v Speaker 1>the government. You've got clarity on where we want to go.

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<v Speaker 3>On tax policy.

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<v Speaker 1>We need an equal amount of clarity on the strategy

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<v Speaker 1>in and around tariffs and increasing manufacturing.

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<v Speaker 3>Here.

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<v Speaker 1>President Trump's big picture point is a good one, but

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<v Speaker 1>you've got to.

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<v Speaker 3>Develop a workable strategy to do that.

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<v Speaker 1>And I think that's what the role of the Treasure

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<v Speaker 1>Secretary of the Commerce Secretary and the National Economic Advisor.

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<v Speaker 3>That's their principal mission.

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<v Speaker 4>Congressman, at least Tophonic is going to be staying put

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<v Speaker 4>in Washington, d C. Not coming to New York to

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<v Speaker 4>work at the UN. And do you think that's an

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<v Speaker 4>admission by the White House that they're nervous about getting

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<v Speaker 4>this tax bill done through Congress they have the votes.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, it surprised me. I'll be candidate.

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<v Speaker 1>I think Elise is an outstanding member of our leadership team.

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<v Speaker 1>We welcome her back to the Congress. But I also

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<v Speaker 1>thought she was going to be an exceptionally well trained,

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<v Speaker 1>qualified ambassador for the President at the United Nations.

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<v Speaker 3>It could signal that.

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<v Speaker 1>I think President Trump's own quote says, we need to

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<v Speaker 1>make sure we have the votes in the House. So

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<v Speaker 1>if you consider that an admission we welcome her back.

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<v Speaker 1>I think it says that maybe replacing her with a

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<v Speaker 1>Republican they think might be tough in New York as

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<v Speaker 1>a political strategy, which is that's been a red district.

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<v Speaker 1>But you know that maybe indicate that and we need

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<v Speaker 1>every vote we have. We have the most narrow margin,

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<v Speaker 1>Mike Johnson has the most narrow margin since World War one,

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<v Speaker 1>and so we don't want to have a gap there.

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<v Speaker 1>And when we pass tax cuts and jobs back in

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<v Speaker 1>President Trump's first term, I think some twenty Republicans voted no,

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<v Speaker 1>so we don't have the luxury of that this time.

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<v Speaker 2>Congressman, we always appreciate your time. It's going to see

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<v Speaker 2>it say with all of you, thank you, sir. Congressman

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<v Speaker 2>front show and also the chair of the House Financial

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<v Speaker 2>Services Committee,