Trump creates new trade body within White House
US President-elect Donald Trump has created a new trade body within the White House that would report directly to him and roped in an economist and a billionaire — both known for their anti-China stance — for his economic team.
The formation of the White House National Trade Council further demonstrates Trump’s determination to make American manufacturing “great” again and to provide every American the opportunity to work in a decent job at a decent wage, the presidential transition team said.
The council would be headed by economist and University of California-Irvin Professor Peter Navarro, who would serve as Assistant to the President and Director of Trade and Industrial Policy, the team said in a statement.
“Navarro is a visionary economist and will develop trade policies that shrink our trade deficit, expand our growth, and help stop the exodus of jobs from our shores,” it said, adding that he has been instrumental in challenging the prevailing Washington orthodoxy on so-called free trade.
Later in the day, Trump announced to appoint billionaire investor Carl Icahn to serve as special advisor on issues related to regulatory reform.
Icahn was one of Trump’s earliest supporters, and his intimate knowledge of what businesses need to grow and thrive makes him a trusted voice in developing President-elect’s ‘America First’ economic agenda, the media statement said.