Katherine Tai
19th United States Trade Representative
Assumed office
March 18, 2021
PresidentJoe Biden
DeputySarah Bianchi
Jayme White
Preceded byRobert Lighthizer
Personal details
Born
Katherine Chi Tai

(1974-03-18) March 18, 1974
Connecticut, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseRobert Skidmore[1]
Education
Signature
Katherine Tai
Traditional Chinese戴琪
Simplified Chinese戴琪

Katherine Chi Tai (born March 18, 1974)[2][3] is an American attorney serving as the 19th United States Trade Representative since March 18, 2021. The daughter of Waishengren immigrants from Taiwan, she is the first Asian American[4] to serve in the position. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the chief trade counsel for the United States House Committee on Ways and Means.

Early life and education

Tai was born on March 18, 1974, in Connecticut. Tai grew up in Washington, D.C., where she attended Sidwell Friends School.[5] Her parents, who are of Chinese descent,[6] were born in China,[7] grew up in Taiwan and later immigrated to the United States.[8][9] Tai is fluent in Mandarin.[10][11][12] In 1996, Tai graduated from Yale University (Pierson College) with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history.[13] After her undergraduate education, she taught English at Sun Yat-sen University as a Yale-China Fellow for two years, from 1996 to 1998.[14][15] Tai went on to study at Harvard Law School, where she earned a Juris Doctor in 2001.[16][17]

After law school, she worked for several law firms, including Powell Goldstein, Sidley Austin, Baker McKenzie, and Miller & Chevalier, and clerked for U.S. District Courts in Washington, D.C., and Maryland.[10][15]

Trade policy career

From 2007 to 2014, Tai served in the Trade Representative's Office of General Counsel, becoming chief counsel for China trade enforcement from 2011 until her departure.[18] At the Office of General Counsel, she worked on trade cases at the World Trade Organization.[19] In 2014, she became trade counsel for the House Ways and Means Committee. She was named chief trade counsel in 2017.[18]

During Tai's tenure with the Committee on Ways and Means, she played a significant role in the House's negotiations with the Trump administration regarding the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA),[10][11] advocating for stronger labor provisions.[14] The Associated Press has described her as a "problem-solving pragmatist on trade policy".[20]

Trade Representative (2021-present)

Tai with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in 2022

Nomination

Tai was nominated by President-elect Joe Biden to serve as Trade Representative in December 2020. Tai has been described as both an "avowed progressive"[21] and as a "consensus builder [who can] help bridge the Democratic Party's varying views on trade".[22]

Hearings on Tai's nomination were held before the Senate Finance Committee on February 25, 2021. Tai was reported out of the committee by unanimous consent on March 3, 2021.[23] The entire Senate confirmed her on March 17, 2021, in a 98–0 vote; Senators Bernie Sanders and Mazie Hirono were absent for the vote.[24] She became the only member of Biden's cabinet to receive unanimous support.

Tenure

Tai was sworn into office on March 18, 2021.[25] In her service as Trade Representative, Tai holds the rank and style of 'Ambassador,' and is a member of the Cabinet of the United States. As Trade Representative, Tai was credited by some advocates for pushing the Biden administration in favor of the TRIPS Waiver.[26] In June 2021, Tai became the first Trade Representative to address the AFL–CIO in what was described as an effort to reset the USTR's relations with labor unions.[27] As Trade Representative, Tai has been a co-chair of the Trade and Technology Council since its creation in 2021.[28]

References

  1. ↑ Adkins, Lenore T (May 5, 2021). "Meet the woman who represents the United States in trade - U.S. Embassy & Consulates in the United Kingdom". US Embassy. Archived from the original on January 8, 2022. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  2. ↑ Garver, Rob (January 29, 2021). "Biden's Trade Representative Expected to Be Assertive with China". VOA. Archived from the original on March 26, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  3. ↑ Ruiz-Grossman, Sarah (March 18, 2021). "Katherine Tai Becomes First Asian American U.S. Trade Representative". HuffPost. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  4. ↑ Katherine Tai unanimously confirmed as first Asian American US trade representative Archived April 1, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, The Guardian, 17 March 2021.
  5. ↑ "Katherine Tai". US-China Business Council. January 22, 2019. Archived from the original on December 9, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  6. ↑ Shalal, Andrea (December 11, 2020). "Biden's trade nominee has family roots in both Taiwan and China". Reuters. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  7. ↑ 中時新聞網 (November 14, 2021). "人物剪影－美國貿易代表戴琪 台裔女將 美國政壇出頭天 - 專題周報". 中時新聞網 (in Chinese). Archived from the original on March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  8. ↑ TaiwanNews (December 10, 2020). "Taiwanese-American Katherine Tai expected to be nominated as US trade envoy". Taiwan News. Archived from the original on December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  9. ↑ "拜登找台裔戴琪出任美國貿易代表 雙親來自台灣 | 國際 | 重點新聞 | 中央社 CNA". www.cna.com.tw (in Chinese). December 10, 2020. Archived from the original on December 13, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  10. 1 2 3 Bade, Gavin (February 1, 2021). "At USTR, a straight-shooter will have to navigate Biden's old guard in Washington". POLITICO. Archived from the original on February 1, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  11. 1 2 Bade, Gavin; Pager, Tyler; Rodriguez, Sabrina (December 9, 2020). "Biden to name Hill staffer Katherine Tai for top trade job". Politico. Archived from the original on December 9, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  12. ↑ Swanson, Ana (December 9, 2020). "Biden Picks Katherine Tai as Trade Representative". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  13. ↑ "FOUR SENIORS AND TWO RECENT ALUMNI CHOSEN FOR TEACHING POSTS IN CHINA AND HONG KONG". Yale Bulletin and Calendar News Stories. Yale University. 1996. Archived from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2021. Katherine Tai '96 of Pierson College will teach at Zhongshan University in Guangzhou -- Canton -- located in Guangdong province, which is close to Hong Kong. Ms. Tai, a history major, will teach English to economics and computer science majors at the university's Lingnan College, under funding the Lingnan Foundation of New York City. Ms. Tai designed curriculum and taught writing classes to immigrants at the Washington School for Chinese Language and Culture for three summers. At Yale she was a freshman counselor and seminar coordinator for her college. May 20 - June 3, 1996
  14. 1 2 Wang, Amy B.; Lynch, David J. (December 9, 2020). "Biden selects Katherine Tai as U.S. trade representative". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  15. 1 2 "Katherine Tai-Employment". Open Secrets. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Neal Announces New Ways and Means Democratic Chief Trade Counsel". House Ways and Means Committee. July 31, 2017. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  17. ↑ "Katherine Tai-Education". Open Secrets. Archived from the original on October 5, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  18. 1 2 Merica, Dan; Saenz, Arlette; Zeleny, Jeff (December 9, 2020). "Biden expected to nominate Katherine Tai to serve as US Trade Representative". CNN. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  19. ↑ Lawder, David; Shalal, Andrea (November 25, 2020). "Lawyer Katherine Tai a Congress favorite for Biden trade czar". Reuters. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  20. ↑ Miller, Zeke; Wiseman, Paul (December 9, 2020). "AP sources: Biden to pick Katherine Tai as top trade envoy". AP News. Archived from the original on December 10, 2020. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  21. ↑ Hirsh, Michael (February 10, 2021). "Why Everyone Likes Katherine Tai". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on October 19, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  22. ↑ Swanson, Ana (February 24, 2021). "Biden Looks to a Consensus Builder to Heal a Democratic Rift on Trade". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  23. ↑ "PN78-18 — Katherine C. Tai — Executive Office of the President 117th Congress (2021-2022)". US Congress. March 17, 2021. Archived from the original on March 18, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  24. ↑ "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Katherine C. Tai, of the District of Columbia, to be United States Trade Representative)". US Senate. March 17, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  25. ↑ "Katherine C. Tai Sworn in as USTR Ambassador" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: Office of the United States Trade Representative. March 18, 2021. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  26. ↑ "Biden's TRIPS Waiver Decision Is A Transformative, Hopeful Event". Revolving Door Project. May 5, 2021. Archived from the original on October 27, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  27. ↑ "U.S. Trade Chief Resets Union Relations in Worker-Centric Push". Bloomberg.com. June 10, 2021. Archived from the original on October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  28. ↑ "EU Eyes May In-Person Meeting of U.S. Technology Council". Bloomberg.com. January 27, 2022. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
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