[CTC] Zients' Trade History

[Arthur Stamoulis]

Politico Morning Trade
January 23, 2023

— President Joe Biden’s expected next chief of staff,  <https://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bf9a45fd35b7e56c72d676ea3aa5e280e8450b07fbc9929b6a0f982964448078b06a69cb7882aa8a9b2ad511b33627eb>Jeff Zients, helped Barack Obama win approval  <https://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bf9a45fd35b7e56ce80f98927f908bab20ab0119066cc64e4fb8c9b12ecddccc3055656a424a02f37b30bc4ccff72090>of Trade Promotion Authority in 2015 and was a strong advocate for the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. He also unsuccessfully proposed consolidating <https://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bf9a45fd35b7e56c14b1f2abec5ea964e8fd0e76f3299331b973e585afbbde70595c44ac3b60736f463bf44601807326> USTR, the U.S. Export-Import Bank and other U.S. trade agencies into the Commerce Department.

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ZIENTS’ TRADE HISTORY: The 56-year-old Duke University alumni was once rumored to be Obama’s choice for USTR to replace Ron Kirk, who served from 2009 to 2013. Zients lost out to Mike Froman, who was White House deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs before moving across F Street to lead the trade agency.

Zients previously worked for Biden as counselor to the president and coronavirus response coordinator from January 2021 to April 2022. He served in a number of capacities for Obama, including as White House budget director.

Mixed record: He raised hackles on the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees in early 2012 with a proposal to create a “one-stop shop” for exporters by merging the Commerce Department’s core trade and functions with USTR, the U.S. Export-Import Bank, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency and the Small Business Administration. The idea never got any further.

Later, Zients worked closely with the congressional trade committees to win Trade Promotion Authority so Obama could finish negotiations on the TPP. However, the Obama administration’s hope of getting congressional approval of the 12-nation pact withered throughout the 2016 presidential campaign and disappeared completely after Donald Trump won the election.

Though the TPP was reviled by most Democrats, Zients joined other Obama administration officials in characterizing it as the “most progressive trade deal ever <https://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=14511d98f04b8e174b2f29a3013cae73efe1650fd2424635e74fe3e075e3c6bb5c91f51a7c9d54bd350a2b4e219c4905>” negotiated. Of course, the proponents also included Biden, who was vice president at the time.

Time will tell: Biden’s outgoing chief of staff Ron Klain has been keen to stay on the good side of the AFL-CIO and other labor groups, which is one reason the administration has been reluctant to negotiate new tariff-cutting agreements.

The new chief’s main job will be managing Biden’s day-to-day affairs, so it remains to be seen whether the change in personnel will be followed by any change in trade policy. Only time will tell, one industry aide said.

“Zients might tip the balance of internal debate in a more pro-trade direction but the policy will not change unless Biden wants it to,” a former U.S. official added. “I think they chose Zients because he is a great manager with a record of getting things done.”

Still, his appointment will likely be seen positively by Japan and other trading partners who continue to push the United States to rejoin the TPP.



Arthur Stamoulis
Citizens Trade Campaign
(202) 494-8826




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