Pelosi sticks it to Trump ... and does him a favor

Your guide to how Washington shapes business and the economy

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE TUE, DEC 10, 2019 CNBC POLITICS EDITOR'S NOTE Hello,   House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is President Trump's top nemesis in Washington. She has routinely challenged him, whether it's been in person, through the media or by congressional action. Just this morning, she kicked off House Democrats' announcement that they would formally charge Trump with two articles of impeachment.   But then about 80 minutes later, Pelosi gave the president a gift – support for a new North American trade agreement.    Thanks to the deal, Trump can now hit the campaign trail and boast that he fulfilled one of his biggest 2016 promises: to renegotiate NAFTA. Now, whether it actually will be better for the U.S. economy and its workers remains to be seen. And Trump was going to claim he killed NAFTA, regardless of whether the new pact, called USMCA, went into effect.   Pelosi and the Democrats, likewise, look to celebrate a victory themselves. Indeed, they're already claiming a win by saying they improved the deal during negotiations with the administration. It also gives Pelosi and crew cover for when Trump and his allies call them "do-nothing" Democrats obsessed with impeaching the president.  Yet, ultimately, it's Trump's deal.   Here's how it gets tricky for Democrats. It looks like Trump will be the third president in history to be impeached. That's on pace to happen well before primary voters hit the polls beginning in February. It would amount to a historic condemnation, and it'll be an easy talking point for Democrats looking to unseat Trump in November. But unless the Senate convicts and removes Trump, which is extremely unlikely, he will still be president through the campaign. Trump will claim that as a win, too.   Thoughts on Trump, trade and Pelosi? Email me at CNBCPolitics@nbcuni.com.   Thanks for reading.   Have friends or colleagues who might like this newsletter? They can sign up here. For more on the intersection of business and politics, sign up for the weekly Capital Exchange newsletter here. Mike Calia @Michael_Calia KEY STORIES  House Democrats and the White House have a deal to move forward with USMCA trade pact The Trump administration now needs to submit USMCA ratifying legislation, which the House could pass this year. Dems announce articles of impeachment against Trump: Abuse of power, obstruction of Congress The House Judiciary Committee plans to vote on the articles this week, sending it to the full House for a final vote in the chamber. Former lobbyist and Biden's current campaign chairman is helping raise cash for the former VP Former lobbyist turned Biden campaign chairman Steve Ricchetti was slated to host a fundraising event for the former vice president in Washington, D.C. Multiple lobbyists were invited to attend. Trump slams FBI Director Christopher Wray for backing DOJ Russia report findings In a tweet, Trump says his FBI chief "will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men & women working there!" Supreme Court refuses to hear case brought by Arizona against Purdue Pharma's Sacklers The Supreme Court refused to hear an unusual case brought by Arizona against the Sackler family and their pharmaceutical company, Purdue Pharma, regarding the opioid epidemic. Why does the US government give Lockheed Martin billions every year? Lockheed Martin is awarded billions of dollars each year in contracts from the U.S. government, beating out competition like Boeing and Raytheon. The company came from humble beginnings but is now the top-grossing defense firm in the world. Comey takes a victory lap after DOJ report on Trump-Russia probe "There was no illegal wiretapping, there were no informants inserted into the campaign, there was no 'spying' on the Trump campaign," wrote the former FBI director, whom Trump fired in 2017. Former Defense secretaries shed light on why Trump talks with North Korea failed Trump wasn't prepared for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, former Defense Secretaries Leon Panetta and James Mattis say.       Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2019 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS