Speaker Nancy Pelosi Nancy PelosiDemocratic senator to party: 'A little message discipline wouldn't kill us' Overnight Health Care: New wave of COVID-19 cases builds in US | Florida to lift all coronavirus restrictions on restaurants, bars | Trump stirs questions with 0 drug coupon plan Overnight Defense: Appeals court revives House lawsuit against military funding for border wall | Dems push for limits on transferring military gear to police | Lawmakers ask for IG probe into Pentagon's use of COVID-19 funds MORE (D-Calif.) on Thursday cast doubt on the possibility of passing an updated North American trade deal by the end of 2019, a departure from her previous characterization of the deal as “imminent.”

“I’m not even sure if we came to an agreement today that it would be enough time to finish,” she said, referencing an end-of-year timeline many had hoped for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer met with Pelosi and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal Richard Edmund NealOn The Money: Half of states deplete funds for Trump's 0 unemployment expansion | EU appealing ruling in Apple tax case | House Democrats include more aid for airlines in coronavirus package House Democrats to include more aid for airlines in coronavirus package The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Republicans lawmakers rebuke Trump on election MORE (D-Mass.) later on Thursday, but a final deal remained out of reach.

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Neal said that of five outstanding issues, they had reached agreement on roughly half of them and would continue negotiations next week.

He remained hopeful, however, that the deal could be finalized and signed into law before the New Year.

For months, Democrats have negotiated with the White House on enforcement provisions in the deal, which they say are critical to earn their support.

“You’re either for enforcement or you're for niceties, and we’d like to have both,” Pelosi said Thursday.

“I voted for NAFTA, you’ve heard me say that over and over, but based on sidebars and letters and all that, which were never honored. So we’re just saying, all these good intentions, let’s honor our workers by putting them in the bill, so they have the effect of law,” she added.

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Republicans have accused Democrats of dithering on the bill, saying the impeachment inquiry into President Trump Donald John TrumpFederal prosecutor speaks out, says Barr 'has brought shame' on Justice Dept. Former Pence aide: White House staffers discussed Trump refusing to leave office Progressive group buys domain name of Trump's No. 1 Supreme Court pick MORE was preventing meaningful progress on legislative action. If passed, USMCA would be a central achievement for Trump going into the 2020 elections. As a candidate, he repeatedly promised to update the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Democrats say that an agreement on the trade deal could set a precedent for future deals.

Updated: 3:11 p.m.