Former Congressional Staffers Appointed to Many USTR Roles

The Biden administration announced a slew of appointments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative that do not require Senate confirmation, allowing the agency to get its agenda underway as U.S. trade representative nominee Katherine Tai awaits a hearing and a floor vote.

General counsel Greta Peisch, who had been senior international trade counsel for the Democrats until her appointment, is the most senior appointee among those on the Feb. 8 list. Peisch served as chief counsel for negotiations, legislation and administrative law in the Office of the General Counsel at USTR before heading to the Senate Finance Committee staff.

Other former Hill staffers come from both protectionist members' staffs and free-trade advocates in the Democratic Party. Nora Todd, most recently chief economic adviser to Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, will be chief of staff to the U.S. trade representative. Shantanu Tata, executive secretary and adviser to the USTR, was most recently Rep. Suzan DelBene's primary adviser on trade issues. DelBene, D-Wash., is a leading voice for free trade in the House Democratic Caucus, particularly on digital trade issues.

Ethan Holmes, special assistant to the USTR, most recently was Rep. Ron Kind's economic policy adviser. Kind, D-Wis., is a leading voice for free trade in the House Democratic Caucus, particularly focused on agricultural export promotion. Jan Beukelman is the assistant USTR for congressional affairs. Before his appointment, he was legislative director for Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del. Sirat Attapit, assistant trade representative for intergovernmental affairs, most recently was director of legislative affairs for California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D). She previously worked on the Hill.

Samuel Negatu, director of congressional affairs to the USTR, was most recently legislative director for Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif. Negatu was a staff negotiator for the USMCA working group, focused on labor issues. Jamila Thompson, a senior adviser to the USTR, spent 19 years as a Hill staffer, most recently as chief of staff for Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga.

Appointees who are not Hill veterans include:

Ginna Lance, deputy chief of staff, was former director of scheduling for Vice President Joe Biden. Adam Hodge, assistant USTR for media and public affairs, was deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Treasury Department during the Obama administration. Brad Setser, counselor to the USTR, was deputy assistant secretary for international economic analysis in the Treasury Department from 2011 to 2015, and is an expert in currency.

Mark Wu, a senior adviser to USTR, is a former director for intellectual property at USTR, and most recently, a Harvard Law School professor. Maira Ferranti Correa, digital media director in the Office of Media and Public Affairs, was a manager on the Biden-Harris campaign's digital team.