BREAKING: In Oval Office Call, Trump Announces Trade Deal With Mexico

President Donald Trump talks on the phone with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Aug. 27, 2018, in Washington. Trump is announcing a trade "understanding" with Mexico that could lead to an overhaul of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Trump made the announcement Monday in the Oval Office, with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto joining by speakerphone. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

No one will have to wonder what happened in this White House telephone call.

President Trump announced a new trade deal with Mexico Monday morning from the Oval Office, with Mexican President Enrique Peña-Nieto appearing via speakerphone (eventually).

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Peña-Nieto led the call, saying he had wanted the opportunity to “review, to modernize, to update” the existing trade agreement between the two countries and expressing his “wish that Canada will also be able to be incorporated in all of this.” He then thanked the negotiating teams of both countries and praised Trump’s “political will” in pursuing the new agreement.

Trump, no fan of NAFTA, gave the new agreement what he described as “an elegant name,” the United States/Mexico Trade Agreement.

Trump took full advantage of the live broadcast to send a few messages to Canada, saying he’d be calling Prime Minister Trudeau soon, and, “if they’d like to negotiate fairly, we’ll do that. They have tariffs of almost 300 percent on some of our dairy products so we can’t have that. We’re not gonna stand for that.”

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The deal will be sent to Congress by Friday, and they have 90 days in which to act. Trump said “the existing deal” (NAFTA) will be terminated “when the new deal happens.”

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