The Senate voted 56-43 Wednesday to confirm Jamieson Greer to be the U.S. trade representative, a post where he’ll initially be tasked with developing a plan to impose reciprocal tariffs on trade partners on a case-by-case basis.
Greer will carry out President Donald Trump’s trade agenda as the White House ramps up its efforts to impose levies on imports. He will work with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on how to levy the reciprocal tariffs — a tit-for-tat approach to U.S. trade relations. His confirmation also comes as Trump again threatens to place 25 percent tariffs on goods imports from Mexico and Canada on Saturday.
“Trade policy can play an important role in ensuring that we have the economic security that leads to strong national security. I am convinced that we have a relatively short window of time to restructure the international trading system to better serve U.S. interests,” Greer said in his opening statement at his Feb. 6 confirmation hearing with the Senate Finance Committee.
