Katherine Tai from the House Ways and Means Committee has been tapped to be nominated to be U.S. Trade Representative for the Biden administration.
In a statement, Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., praised Tai as a potential pick and called on Senate Republicans to process her nomination "as quickly as possible" following the inauguration on January 20.
From 2007 to 2014, Tai worked USTR where she successfully prosecuted several cases on Chinese trade practices at the World Trade Organization. If confirmed, Tai, who is Asian-American, would be the first woman of color to serve as the U.S. trade representative. She is also fluent in mandarin which could be an asset in dealing with China.
However, Biden has said he would not make any “immediate moves” to lift the tariffs President Trump has imposed on roughly $370 billion of Chinese imports. Biden said he would first conduct a full review of the Phase One trade deal the Trump administration reached with Beijing.