Ep. 24 – WITA’s Friday Exchange: Modernizing the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement USMCA with the Coalition for North American Trade

01/02/2026

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WITA

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Former Trade Negotiators Discuss This Week’s Tariff and Trade Developments.

No one understands the dynamics with key U.S. trading partners better than the people who led these kinds of difficult trade negotiations for the United States. Panelists will update our viewers on the trade policy announcements, what remains undone; and what are expected next steps in these trade negotiations.

On December 4, 2025 WITA hosted the CoChairs of the Coalition for North American Trade for a fireside chat to discuss the review of the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA). The three leaders discussed how the agreement makes all three countries more competitive in facing global challenges.

Featured Speakers:

Kevin Brady, Senior Consultant at Akin; former Chairman of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee. During his time as Chairman, he played a crucial role in passage of the USMCA in 2019.

Kenneth Smith Ramos, Partner at Agon in Mexico City, Mexico’s former Chief Negotiator for the modernization of NAFTA; former Head of the Trade and the NAFTA Office at the Mexican Ministry of the Economy in Washington, DC.

Steve Verheul, Principal at GT & Co, Toronto, Canada’s former Chief Trade Negotiator for the USMCA; former Assistant Deputy Minister of the Trade Policy and Negotiations Branch at Global Affairs Canada; and former Chief Trade Negotiator between Canada & the European Union in the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Moderator, Nasim Fussel, Vice President of Trade & International at the Business Roundtable; former Chief International Trade Counsel for the Senate Finance Committee; former Trade Counsel for the Ways and Means Committee; Chair of WITA’s Board of Directors.