News / Resources

Washington, D.C., partner Elliot Feldman, Leader of Baker Hostetler's international trade practice, was invited to address the Center for U.S. Studies and Ministère des Relations Internationales Université du Québec à Montréal. On March 5, 2009, Feldman delivered the speech: "The Next American President: Challenges For The United States And North America—Special Circumstances And Special Relationships: The End Of An Era?"

"For many Canadians, asking how the Obama Administration will treat Canada is the same as asking whether NAFTA will be renegotiated," Feldman said. "I want to advance two contrary views. First that NAFTA will not be and should not be renegotiated, but not because it is working well and should not be changed. To the contrar—the second point—it should be abandoned in favor of something else. I intend to demonstrate that NAFTA is largely a failure, and now is in the way. President Obama represents an extraordinary opportunity to reinvent North America, and North America, to be competitive globally and healthy within its own borders, needs reinvention."

To read the full text of Feldman's speech, click here.