As Donald Trump’s pick for U.S. trade representative, Robert Lighthizer, makes the rounds on Capitol Hill this week, members of the Senate Finance Committee are gearing up for a confirmation hearing they say could involve questions about the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the nominee’s stance on how to tap new export markets for the U.S. agriculture industry.
[Daily News| January 11, 2017 |Inside US Trade]
Lighthizer on Jan. 10 met with Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT), as well as with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). He is scheduled to meet with other committee members later this week.
The Finance panel is tasked with vetting Lighthizer. Hatch on Jan. 10 said the committee will first “have to get all the paperwork done before we can schedule a hearing,” but added that he has no doubt Lighthizer will be confirmed.