Was NAFTA a good idea?

Asked by JLeslie (65445) January 27th, 2017 from iPhone

I remember when it was enacted (is that the right word?). I was fairly young, and I remember wondering if it was a good idea. It seemed odd to me to open trade borders like that when the border is shared by one country (two I guess if we count Canada) that is a very prosperous, industrialized country, and on the other side a country with weak and unstable currency and cheap labor.

I didn’t know enough about the possible economic impact or other impacts for that matter, so I wasn’t opinionated at the time, but rather more curious than anything.

Now, here we are years later and I find myself thinking about what happens if NAFTA is dismantled. Will it bring jobs back to America? Will it hurt Mexico’s economy? Will even more Mexicans be trying to cross our border for work?

I know a lot of jellies hate and fear Trump, but if we can keep this more about a discussion specific to NAFTA and the impact it has had on the US and what you think the impact will be if it disappears.