By Kent Klein – WHITE HOUSE — President Barack Obama nominated economic adviser Michael Froman as his new U.S. Trade Representative, and businesswoman and political fundraiser Penny Pritzker as Commerce Secretary. The president spoke Thursday before leaving for two days of economic-related talks in Latin America.
“And over the past four years, he has been my point person at global forums like the G8 and the G20,” Obama stated. “And by the way, when I say ‘point person,’ he has really been the driving force oftentimes in organizing these incredible international summits in which huge amounts of business get done.”
After his announcement, the president left for two days in Mexico and Costa Rica, where he was expected to talk with Central American leaders about expanding trade deals with other parts of the world.
Obama said Froman will help advance trade negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership with the Asia-Pacific region and the Trans-Atlantic Partnership with Europe. And he said his nominee will insist that trade be conducted fairly.
“He has won the respect of our trading partners around the world. He has also won a reputation as being an extraordinarily tough negotiator while doing it. He does not rest until he has delivered the best possible deal for American businesses and American workers,” noted Obama.
Froman’s nomination received generally good reviews from the U.S. business community.
A frequent administration critic, U.S. Chamber of Commerce chief executive officer Thomas Donohue, said Thursday his group will support Froman’s nomination. In a statement, Donohue said Froman “has the vision and experience to deliver new trade opportunities for American workers and companies at the negotiating table.”
In selecting Penny Pritzker to run the Commerce Department, the president called her “one of our country’s most distinguished business leaders.”
The Hyatt hotel heiress has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for both of Obama’s presidential campaigns. She served on his Presidential Economic Recovery Advisory Board in 2009, and later on his Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.
If confirmed, Pritzker and Froman would fill the last remaining openings in the president’s cabinet. Obama urged the Senate to confirm both nominees quickly.
Penny Pritzker,Obama's Fairy Godmother. She raised over $ 750,000,000 for then senator Obama of Illinois in his first bid for president.She held a leadership position in a Chicago based bank called Superior Bank,now defunct.In 2001 the Feds fined her and her family $460,000,000 for the predatory,deceitful and rascist tactics and practices of Superior Bank. At the time of it's collapse, Superior was the costliest bank failure ever.Taxpayers lost nearly half a billion dollars.Depositers lost millions and many poor residents of State Senator Obama's Southside lost their homes.Pritzker later introduced Senator Obama to Robert Rubin foremer Sec of Treasury. and former chairman of Goldman Sachs.Rubin and Pritzker gave a lot of money to his campaign and Obama agreed to appoint Larry Summers and
Michael Froman is a garden variety globalist who worked at Citicorp,etc and is a former classmate of Obama at Harvard law School. Maybe he can tell us about Barry and fill in the blanks of his college days.I seriously doubt it.Both micael and Penny are members of the CFR (council on Foreign Relations)
Comments are closed.