Robert Lighthizer | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait of Lighthizer, 2017 | |
| 18th United States Trade Representative | |
| In office May 15, 2017 – January 20, 2021 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Jeffrey Gerrish C.J. Mahoney Dennis Shea |
| Preceded by | Michael Froman |
| Succeeded by | Katherine Tai |
| 1st United States Deputy Trade Representative | |
| In office April 15, 1983 – August 16, 1985 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Alan Woods |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Emmet Lighthizer October 11, 1947 Ashtabula, Ohio, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Georgetown University (BA, JD) |
Robert Emmet Lighthizer (/ˈlaɪthaɪzər/; born October 11, 1947)[1] is an American attorney and government official who was the United States Trade Representative in the Donald Trump administration from 2017 to 2021.[2]
After he graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 1973, Lighthizer joined the firm of Covington and Burling in Washington, D.C. He left the firm in 1978 to work as chief minority counsel and later staff director and chief of staff of the Senate Committee on Finance under Chairman Bob Dole. In 1983, Robert Lighthizer was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be Deputy U.S. Trade Representative for President Ronald Reagan. In 1985, Lighthizer joined the Washington office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP as a partner and led the firm's international trade group. On January 3, 2017, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Lighthizer as his U.S. Trade Representative.[3] Lighthizer was confirmed by the Senate on May 11, 2017, by a vote of 82–14.[4]
Lighthizer was an architect of American trade policy during Trump's presidency.[5] A protectionist and a trade skeptic, his policies are oriented toward protection of manufacturing in the United States. Lighthizer played a key role in the administration's renegotiation of NAFTA and the United States' trade war with China.[5][6][7][8] Many of these trade policies have been preserved, and in some cases, extended by the Biden administration.[9]
- ^ Clarke, Sara (January 31, 2017). "10 Things You Didn't Know About Robert Lighthizer". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
- ^ "United States Trade Representative, Robert E. Lighthizer". Ustr.gov. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ "The White House". Whitehouse.gov. Archived from the original on September 5, 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ "U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 115th Congress – 1st Session". Senate.gov. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ a b Palmer, Doug (January 4, 2021). "Turn it up to 11: Trump's trade carnage went beyond tariff wars". POLITICO.
- ^ DePillis, Lydia (October 13, 2020). "Robert Lighthizer Blew Up 60 Years of Trade Policy. Nobody Knows What Happens Next". ProPublica.
- ^ "We're proud of what we've done, says Trump's trade chief". December 17, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ "No Trade Is Free — Robert Lighthizer's lessons from Trump's tariff war with China". www.ft.com. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Bade, Gavin (August 4, 2024). "Trump's trade guru plots an even more disruptive second term". POLITICO.