Obama nominations update Oct 21, 2009 - business groups press Senate

Manchester Trade Updates

October 21, 2009

The Honorable Harry Reid
The Honorable Mitch McConnell
The Honorable Max Baucus
The Honorable Chuck Grassley
The Honorable John Kerry
The Honorable Richard Lugar

Dear Senators Reid, McConnell, Baucus, Grassley, Kerry and Lugar:
On behalf of the more than 260,000 American exporters and companies doing
business around the world, we write to ask your assistance in pressing for votes to be held
on five nominees to key commercial sub-Cabinet posts in the Commerce, Treasury and
State Departments, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative. While these
positions sit empty, the interests of American exporters and their workers are suffering.
American business exported $1.8 trillion of goods and services last year, supporting
millions of jobs across the country. The U.S. government is vital to opening markets
abroad, ensuring level playing fields, preventing discrimination in favor of local interests,
and ensuring transparency and fair competition in business dealings overseas. For
decades, senior officials and ambassadors appointed by presidents of both parties have
been vigorous advocates for U.S. exporters.

However, in order to support U.S. trade interests effectively, the Administration must
have in place the key officials to advance trade policy and interact with senior officials of
other governments. Unfortunately, nominees in five key positions have been unable to
obtain votes in the United States Senate; and this is hampering the advancement of U.S.
trade objectives and jobs:
• Miriam Sapiro, nominee for Deputy U.S. Trade Representative with
responsibility for World Trade Organization (WTO) affairs and trade relations
with Europe, Middle East and the Americas. She was nominated on April 20,
2009 and was voted unanimously out of the Finance Committee on July 23rd. Her
nomination has yet to be scheduled for a vote on the floor.

• Francisco Sanchez, nominee for Under Secretary of Commerce for International
Trade. He was nominated on April 20, 2009, and was voted unanimously out of
the Banking Committee on May 21. He has yet to receive a hearing before the
Finance Committee, which has joint jurisdiction.

• Lael Brainard, nominee for Under Secretary of Treasury for International Affairs.
She was nominated on March 23, 2009. She has yet to receive a hearing before
the Finance Committee.

• Arturo Valenzuela, nominee for Assistant Secretary of State for Western
Hemisphere Affairs. He was nominated on June 8, 2009 and was voted favorably
out of the Foreign Relations Committee on July 28, 2009. His nomination has yet
to be scheduled for a vote on the floor.

• Thomas Shannon, nominee for Ambassador to Brazil (and currently Assistant
Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs). He was nominated on June
1, 2009, and was voted favorably out of the Foreign Relations Committee on July
20, 2009. His nomination has yet to be scheduled for a vote on the floor.

We deeply respect the Constitutional role of the United States Senate in providing
advice and consent to President on senior nominations. Indeed, there is no doubt that a
thorough and searching Senate confirmation process has proven to be of great benefit to
U.S. foreign policy over the last two centuries.

However, these vacancies matter, and the passage of each week places America at a
larger disadvantage in leveling the global playing field. As representatives of U.S.
business interests, we respectfully urge swift action on each of the five nominees named
above. If they have passed out of the Committee approval process, we urge the leadership
to schedule immediate votes on their nominations. If they are awaiting the Committee
hearing process, we urge the completion of the committee investigations and the holding of
appropriate hearings.

Respectfully,
Business Council for International Understanding
Business Roundtable
Council of the Americas
Coalition of Service Industries
Emergency Committee for American Trade
National Association of Manufacturers
National Foreign Trade Council
United States Council on International Business
U.S. Chamber of Commerce