Spanberger and other moderate freshman Democrats who flipped Republican districts to hand their party the majority in 2018 could be key to getting a vote on the U.S.-Mexico Canada Agreement this year. And even though that would give Trump a policy victory heading into the 2020 election, members of this group are beginning to put increasing pressure on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to bring the measure to the floor as they head back from a summer recess spent talking to impatient constituents.

“If we’re not seeing progress, if we’re not seeing the implementation documents by October, I think that’s a serious, serious problem,” Spanberger told POLITICO at the tail end of a two-day swing through her district’s rural areas, where she heard from farmers pleading for relief from trade policies that have gutted their profits.

The issue will crystalize the divide between moderates in the Democratic caucus and progressives who are loath to give Trump a policy win when Congress returns to work in September.