United States Trade Representative

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United States Trade Representative
US-TradeRepresentative-Seal.svg
Seal of the United States Trade Representative
Flag of the United States Trade Representative.svg
Flag of the United States Trade Representative
Incumbent
Juan Millán
Acting  
since January 20, 2025
Office of the United States Trade Representative
Seat Winder Building 600 17th St. NW, Washington, D.C.
AppointerThe President
with Senate advice and consent
Term length No fixed term
Constituting instrument 19 U.S.C.   § 2171
Inaugural holder Christian Herter
FormationDecember 10, 1962
DeputyDeputy Trade Representative (multiple)
Salary Executive Schedule, Level I
Website www.ustr.gov

The United States trade representative is the head of the Office of the United States Trade Representative and is the principal trade advisor to the president of the United States. The trade representative is responsible for managing and the day-to-day operations of the office. The trade representative is nominated by the president of the United States and, following a confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance, is confirmed by the Senate. The United States trade representative and deputy United States trade representatives (DUSTR) carry the rank of ambassador. [1]

Contents

The trade representative is a Cabinet-level position, though not technically within the Cabinet, as is the case with office heads not of US departments but rather of offices contained within the Executive Office of the President. The trade representative is a Level I position in the Executive Schedule and thus earns the salary prescribed for that level $246,400, as of January 2024. [2] [3]

History of the United States trade representative

Trade negotiations became more complicated in the twentieth century with the rise of multilateral organizations and technological advances allowing for more commerce. As a result, the organization of the U.S. government (with Congress in charge of regulating foreign commerce and the executive branch in charge of treaties) became less efficient and in 1962 Congress passed a bill calling for the president to appoint a special representative for trade negotiations who would make suggestions to the president on the matters of trade. [4] In the 1970s, Congress expanded this position, making it more accountable to Congress (the position has been called "a creature of Congress" [5] ), and made it cabinet-level. Finally, in 1980 the position was renamed the United States trade representative. [4]

The Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 elevated the position's role to "coordinate trade policy, serve as the president's principal trade advisor and trade 'spokesperson', and lead U.S. international trade negotiations". [5] It also "required the USTR to report to both the president and Congress". [5]

List of United States trade representatives

  Denotes an acting U.S. trade representative
  Denotes a nominee for U.S. trade representative
#PortraitOfficeholderTerm startTerm endDays in officePresident(s)
1 Christian Archibald Herter (politician).jpg Christian Herter December 10, 1962December 30, 19664 years, 20 days John F. Kennedy
Lyndon Johnson
2 Portrait de William M. Roth.jpg William Roth March 24, 1967January 20, 19691 year, 302 days
3 No image.svg Carl Gilbert August 6, 1969September 21, 19712 years, 46 days Richard Nixon
4 No image.svg William Eberle November 12, 1971December 24, 19743 years, 42 days
5 FrederickBailyDent.jpg Frederick Dent March 26, 1975January 20, 19771 year, 300 days Gerald Ford
6 RobertStrauss.jpg Robert Strauss March 30, 1977August 17, 19792 years, 140 days Jimmy Carter
7 ReubinAskew.JPG Reubin Askew October 1, 1979December 31, 19801 year, 91 days
8 Bill brock.jpg Bill Brock January 23, 1981April 29, 19854 years, 96 days Ronald Reagan
9 Clayton Keith Yeutter, 1990-04-24.jpg Clayton Yeutter July 1, 1985January 20, 19893 years, 203 days
10 Carla A. Hills official portrait.jpg Carla Hills February 6, 1989January 20, 19933 years, 349 days George H. W. Bush
11 MichaelKantor.jpg Mickey Kantor January 22, 1993April 12, 19963 years, 81 days Bill Clinton
— Charlene Barshefsky official portrait.jpg Charlene Barshefsky
Acting: 1996–1997		April 12, 1996March 18, 1997340 days
12April 12, 1996January 20, 20014 years, 283 days
13 Zoellick, Robert (official portrait 2008).jpg Robert Zoellick February 7, 2001February 22, 20054 years, 15 days George W. Bush
— Peter Allgeier (cropped).jpg Peter Allgeier
Acting		February 23, 2005May 16, 2005113 days
14 Rob Portman official photo.jpg Rob Portman May 17, 2005May 29, 20061 year, 12 days
15 Susan Schwab, USTR official photo.jpg Susan Schwab June 8, 2006January 20, 20092 years, 196 days
— Peter Allgeier (cropped).jpg Peter Allgeier
Acting		January 21, 2009March 17, 200955 days Barack Obama
16 Ron Kirk official portrait.jpg Ron Kirk March 18, 2009March 15, 20133 years, 362 days
— DemetriosMarantis.jpg Demetrios Marantis
Acting		March 15, 2013May 23, 2013100 days
— Miriam Sapiro official portrait.jpg Miriam Sapiro
Acting		May 23, 2013June 21, 201328 days
17 Michael Froman official portrait.jpg Michael Froman June 21, 2013January 20, 20173 years, 213 days
— Maria L. Pagan, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (cropped).jpg Maria Pagan
Acting		January 20, 2017March 1, 201740 days Donald Trump
— Stephen P. Vaughn.png Stephen Vaughn
Acting		March 2, 2017May 15, 201774 days
18 Robert E. Lighthizer official portrait (cropped).jpg Robert Lighthizer May 15, 2017January 20, 20213 years, 250 days
— Maria L. Pagan, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (cropped).jpg Maria Pagan
Acting		January 20, 2021March 18, 202157 days Joe Biden
19 Katherine Tai, official portrait.jpg Katherine Tai March 18, 2021January 20, 20253 years, 334 days
— Juan Millán
Acting		January 20, 2025present Donald Trump
(2025–present)

References

  1. ↑ "Mission of the USTR | United States Trade Representative". ustr.gov. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Salary Table No. 2021-EX Rates of Basic Pay for the Executive Schedule (EX)" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  3. ↑ 5 U.S.C.   § 5312
  4. 1 2 Claussen, Kathleen (2017). "Trading Spaces: The Changing Role of the Executive in U.S. Trade Lawmaking". Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies. 24 (2): 345–368. doi:10.2979/indjglolegstu.24.2.0345. ISSN   1080-0727. JSTOR   10.2979/indjglolegstu.24.2.0345. S2CID   158184598.
  5. 1 2 3 U.S. Trade Policy Functions: Who Does What? (2020). Congressional Research Service. Retrieved from https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/IF11016.pdf on 2021-01-14.
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