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Comment on Ron Kirk as USTR |
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Written by Stumo
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Thursday, 18 December 2008 |
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Charlie Blum posted this comment regarding the Ron Kirk USTR pick, and I am elevating it to a full post.
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Kirk appears to be a competent professional and a succesful political
animal, without being a policy wonk like Charlene Barshefsky or a
veteran of the US Congress like Bill Brock. That may not be that so
bad.
He will have to rely on staff to understand complex issues and manage
complex negotiations, to the extent we have any in the next term. In
my experience, the USTR works best when staff develops the policy
options and the boss makes the political calls. So, let's reserve
judgment on Kirk's nomination until we see who gets the deputy jobs and
the general counsel slot.
As the trade negotiation functrion may be downgraded after the orgy of "competitive liberalization" launched by Bob Zoellick, it will be particulary telling if one of the deputies has a solid legal background and an established reputation for bold, creative use of the rules to enforce American rights and advance American interests.
As for his free trade leanings, any[i][/i] USTR appointee must have that credential, whatever it really means in practice. There has never been a more passionate free trader than Ronald Reagan, yet his administration took one strong and sometimes creative "fair trade" measure after another to deal with specific problems as they arose
One night in 1984 as I was driving home from my USTR office, the President opened his evening press conference by exclaiming "Thank God the dollar is strong again." I almost wrecked the car, because the strong dollar was punishing our manufacturing sector and thus extending my working day. Some months later, Reagan signed off the Plaza Accord that realigned the dollar with major unbdervalued currencies and then gave one of the best speeches ever on the need for "free" trade to be fair.
I'd recommend that Mr. Kirk study that speech before he makes his first decision.
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