Robert Lighthizer

Lighthizer with former Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in January 2017

On January 3, 2017, Donald Trump announced that he planned to nominate Lighthizer as U.S. Trade Representative, a cabinet-level position.[13] On January 23, press reports speculated that Lighthizer's nomination might require a waiver of section 141(b)(4) of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, due to his brief representation of a foreign government in litigation 25 years prior.[14] In March, White House Counsel Donald McGahn sent a letter to Senate leadership citing a Clinton-era opinion by the White House Counsel arguing that the statute was an unconstitutional limit on the president's ability to appoint his cabinet.[15][16]

At his confirmation hearing, Lighthizer was introduced by former Senator Bob Dole and U.S. senators from Ohio Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman. In introducing Lighthizer, Brown said, "Mr. Lighthizer is eminently qualified, as Senator Dole said, for this job. He has a long history of fighting on behalf of American manufacturers, and I would add, American workers."[17]

On April 25, the Senate Finance Committee unanimously approved Lighthizer's nomination to serve as the U.S. Trade Representative as well as a waiver of section 141(b)(4) of the Trade Act of 1974.[18]

Lighthizer was confirmed as the 18th U.S. Trade Representative on May 11, 2017, by a margin of 82–14.[19] He was sworn in by Vice President Mike Pence on May 15, 2017.[20]

Three days later, on May 18, Lighthizer notified Congress that President Trump intended to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which would make him the first USTR to renegotiate a major U.S. free trade agreement.[21]

According to multiple reports, Lightizer became one of the most influential Trump Administration officials and the lead figure in formulating the administration's trade policy.[22][23][24] The reports noted his agreement with Trump on trade issues.[25]

In April 2018, it was reported that Lightizer had spent $917,000 on new furnishings for two offices. Lighthizer said the upgrades had been initiated under former President Barack Obama to replace decades-old furniture, an assertion supported by vendors who supplied the new items.[26]

Lighthizer has stated that using tariffs to promote American industry was a Republican tenet dating back to the pro-business politicians who established the party.[27] In a 2008 op-ed, he defended protectionism.[28]

Speaking at a July 2020 event at Chatham House, Lighthizer stated that bilateral trade agreements and a multilateral system conflict with each other, and that one of those two options should be chosen over the other.[29]

Lighthizer with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He in January 2019

Politico describes Lighthizer as "a decades-long skeptic of Beijing".[25] Lighthizer has accused the country of China of unfair trade practices,[30] and he believes China needs to make substantive and structural changes to its trade policies, as opposed to only minor changes it has offered in the past.[31] He wrote: "The icon of modern conservatism, Ronald Reagan, imposed quotas on imported steel, protected Harley-Davidson from Japanese competition, restrained import of semiconductors and automobiles, and took myriad similar steps to keep American industry strong. How does allowing China to constantly rig trade in its favor advance the core conservative goal of making markets more efficient? Markets do not run better when manufacturing shifts to China largely because of the actions of its government."[30]

In a 1997 op-ed in The New York Times, Lighthizer advocated against allowing China to join the World Trade Organization.[32] He suggested that the U.S. should bring more cases against China for failure to comply with the regulations of the World Trade Organization. In testimony before the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission in 2010, Lighthizer said that "USTR (U.S. Trade Representative) should pursue WTO litigation with respect to all such examples of non-compliance. If necessary, Congress should give USTR additional resources to increase its ability."[33] Lighthizer called for reforming the WTO during a testimony to Congress on June 17, 2020.[34]

In March 2020, Lighthizer stated that the COVID-19 pandemic had shown that the U.S. must promote domestic manufacturing of medical supplies and reduce its reliance on foreign countries.[35]