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The argument was that Michigan stands more to gain by the repeal of NAFTA than to gain. Unless you are arguing that, if NAFTA is repealed, Michigan will produce all of the displaced categories by itself, that argument is virtually impossible to make.

My comment #86 was a narrow one to the effect that the below table taken in isolation (first referenced in your comment #80) didn't show the complete story:

**Michigan's Leading Exports to Canada**
*2002, in millions of U.S. dollars*
Motor vehicle parts, not including engines	$6,813
Automobiles	$2,999
Motor vehicle engines	$1,773
Trucks	$1,304
Unshaped plastics	$436
Motor vehicle engine parts	$403
Plate, sheet & strip, steel	$300
Air conditioning & refrigeration equipment	$287
Bolts, nuts & screws	$188
Furniture & fixtures	$176

By itself, the table shows tangible, desirable results of $15 billion in exports from Michigan to Canada; however, taking into account the countervailing table from the same page showing $39 billion worth of imports from Canada to Michigan:

**Michigan's Leading Imports from Canada**
*2002, in millions of U.S. dollars*
Automobiles	$22,587
Trucks	$7,968
Motor vehicle parts, not including engines	$4,187
Motor vehicle engines & parts	$1,310
Synthetic rubber & plastics	$782
Crude petroleum	$763
Natural gas	$633
Basic metal products	$375
Aluminum, including alloys	$329
Plate, sheet & strip, steel	$326

We see that there is a large trade deficit over $20 billion by Michigan with Canada (assuming that all other "non-leading" items are in aggregate insignificant).

But to address the wider point about NAFTA that you quite rightly bring the focus back to in #113, to wit: "Unless you are arguing that, if NAFTA is repealed, Michigan will produce all of the displaced categories by itself, that argument is virtually impossible to make" it seems very clear to me that if Michigan merely produced the first item in the second list, automobiles, -- and, yes, Michigan certainly can produce automobiles as well as Canada can -- merely producing this $22 billion item would almost correct Michigan's entire trade balance with Canada.

And by just producing the next item on the second list, trucks, and shifting this $8 billion back to our side of the border -- and, yes, Michigan can produce trucks just as well as Canada -- that would entirely eliminate Michigan's trade deficit with Canada.