Biden’s pick for top U.S. trade official will continue tough line on China, says ex-Trump official – By Yen Nee Lee (CNBC) / Dec 18 2020
- U.S. President-elect Joe Biden named Katherine Tai as his choice for the U.S. trade representative — a critical position that will negotiate trade with China.
- Tai, a Mandarin speaker and expert on China, will likely carry on a tough line against Beijing, according to former Trump trade negotiator Clete Willems.
- But Tai would favor working with allies as she’s handled joint disputes by U.S. and partners — including the European Union, Mexico and Japan — at the WTO against China, said Willems.
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for his incoming administration’s top trade official will likely carry on a tough line against China, according to former Trump trade negotiator Clete Willems.
Biden last week named Katherine Tai, a trade lawyer, as his choice for the U.S. trade representative — a critical Cabinet-level position tasked with enforcing U.S. import rules as well as negotiate trading terms with China and other countries.
“Katherine Tai is an excellent choice for USTR and the right person for the moment,” Willems, who’s now partner at law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, told CNBC in an email.
Folks like me who worked in the Trump Administration have a ton of respect for her and think she will help carry on a tough line on China.
Clete Willems
PARTNER, AKIN GUMP STRAUSS HAUER & FELD
Tai, a Mandarin speaker and expert on China, played a key role as chief trade counsel on the House Ways and Means Committee in pushing for stronger labor and environmental provisions in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
