Biden's pick for his trade rep signals a new focus on Asian economies

SCREEN CAPTURE /CSPAN

Katherine Tai is Joe Biden's nominee for the U.S. Trade Representative.

President-elect Joe Biden's selection of Katherine Tai as his top trade representative, may signal that under his administration, the U.S. will likely seek to regain its leadership role in the economies of Asian allies.

On Thursday Biden named Katherine Tai, a trade lawyer with a history of taking on China, as his incoming administration’s pick for the United States’ top trade representative.

"From our work together on Ways and Means, I have seen firsthand Ms. Tai’s skill and experience with trade deals and have been impressed by her work on the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) Agreement, as well as her vast knowledge of the current and coming trade challenges," said Rep. Judy Chu, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

"Through her work as Chief Counsel for China Trade Enforcement at USTR, Ms. Tai has also demonstrated her commitment to enforcing trade deals that work for the United States."

Tai is the second Asian American Biden has picked to be on his Cabinet. Neera Tanden was nominated earlier for the director of the Office of Management and Budget.

If confirmed by the Senate, the Mandarin-fluent Tai would inherit a critical, Cabinet-level position tasked with enforcing America’s import rules and brokering trading terms with China and other nations.

“Katherine’s nomination is also historic. She would be the first Asian American and the first woman of color to serve in this role, breaking barriers and clearing the way for others to follow. She would also be one of the highest ranking Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) officials in our government. 

Tai has spent her career working to level the playing field for American workers and families. Currently, Tai serves as the chief lawyer on trade to the Chairman and Democratic Members of the Committee on Ways and Means on matters of international trade as Chief Trade Counsel. In this role, she has secured key victories for workers in U.S. trade policy and has been praised by lawmakers and lawyers for her work. 

Prior to the Committee, Tai served in the USTR’s Office of the General Counsel, first as Associate General Counsel from 2007 to 2011 and then as Chief Counsel for China Trade Enforcement with responsibility for the development and litigation of U.S. disputes against China at the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Before joining USTR, Tai worked in the international trade departments in various Washington, D.C. law firms. From 1996 to 1998, she lived and worked in Guangzhou, China teaching English at Sun Yat-Sen University as a Yale-China Fellow. Tai was born in Connecticut — the first American-born citizen in her family — and raised in the Washington, D.C. area. She is a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law School.

Tai had a central role in negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership during the Obama administration that was strongly criticized during the 2016 Presidential campaign.

The TPP excluded China and was a cornerstone of Obama’s efforts to cement U.S. influence in Asia. The agreement was killed when Donald Trump took office. With the U.S. influenced weakened, China quickly moved. China has since signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership with 14 other countries, a trade agreement that excludes the U.S. and covers about 30% of the world’s economy.

“While I am thrilled about Katherine’s nomination, I urge President-elect Biden to continue to ensure that more AAPIs are represented in his Cabinet," said Chu who was part of a delegation of AAPI leaders to meet with the Biden transition team last week to urged Biden to name more AAPI to Secretary-level positions in his administration. 

"For over two decades, there has always been at least one AAPI at the Secretary level in the Cabinet, and I urge President-elect Biden to continue to maintain that base level of representation as part of his promise to build a government that inspires young people, prioritizes expertise, and reflects the diversity of our nation.”

No more Whoppers for me; join the boycott

JOIN ME in boycotting Burger King for it's recent gambit for avoiding paying taxes to the U.S.

Yesterday (Aug. 26) the fast-food Whopper maker completed its purchase of Canadian-based Tim Horton's, thus making Burger King the third-biggest of the fast-food chains in America.

The tax-saving maneuver has been denounced by political leaders and at least one senator has called for a boycott.

Burger King's decision to abandon the United States means consumers should turn to Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers or White Castle sliders," said Senator Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio). "Burger King has always said, 'Have it your way'; well  my way is to support two Ohio companies that haven't abandoned their country or customers." Wendy's is based in Dublin, Ohio while White Castle is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.

Burger King will move its corporate headquarters from Miami to Canada. It is owned by a Brazilian conglomerate and they don't care what country the headquarters is as long as it saves the struggling company money.

While Burger King downplays the tax benefits it would receive, many believe that the move to purchase a foreign company and transfer its headquarters to Canada is in response to President Obama's recent denunciation of American companies strategy to avoid paying U.S. taxes.

News of the deal came out over the weekend and people flooded the fast-food chains Facebook page with boycott threats.

President Obama spoke out about the strategy of "tax inversion" last month and threatened to place restrictions on companies who wanted to pursue that route. Tax Inversion is a situation wherein an American company buys a company based in another country with a lower tax rate, opts out of its American corporate citizenship and becomes a corporate citizen of the foreign country. What it comes down to is tax avoidance.

America gives a company its start, U.S. banks finance it, goods are shipped on government-built roads, American job training programs trains its workers and American colleges produces its management, American-built roads deliver the goods, American customers give it a solid financial foundation. Hell, government granted businesses like Burger King to incorporate with rights and privileges. Corporations like Burger King want to turn its back on America and the taxpayer-funded system that allowed and encouraged it to thrive and grow.

The U.S. corporate tax is high, 35%, but through our loophole-laced tax code, the average American corporation's tax rate is 12-15%, much lower than most households of middle class America. Some corporations are so good at dodging taxes they pay zero, nada, nothing -- in taxes. (That's not fair or right either.)

I gladly pay my taxes and I'm sure most of you pay your taxes because we are part of a larger community. Our taxes comes back to us in our infrastructure, our education, our water delivery systems, sewage, electricity and other government services, Social Security, Medicare and the Affordable Care Act.

Earlier this month, drugstore giant Walgreens also was seeking a tax inversion but after the bad publicity and customer backlash, it decided to abandon those plans.

If Burger King doesn't appreciate what our system of government and economy allowed the company to do; if Burger King doesn't care about our country; if Burger King doesn't need us, well, -- WE DON'T NEED IT. There are plenty of other burger joints in town.