Electoral map spurred Trump’s NAFTA change of heart

President Trump backed off plans to scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) after seeing a map showing that states that voted for him would be hurt by the move, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross gave Trump a map noting that farm and border states that heavily backed Trump in last year’s election would lose jobs if the U.S. ended the trade deal, the report said.

Trump was also reportedly influenced by a deluge of calls to the White House from business executives.

{mosads}Trump agreed not to abandon NAFTA “at this time” during Wednesday phone calls with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying he would seek a renegotiation instead.

Reports emerged this week that Trump was considering an executive order announcing his intent to do away with NAFTA.

The president planned to announce the move during a campaign-style rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, the 100th day of his administration.

Trump frequently bashed NAFTA as “a disaster for our country” on the campaign trail.

He admitted Thursday that eliminating the 1994 pact would have been a “shock to the system.”

“But we’re going to give renegotiation a good, strong shot,” he said.