Congress

“Untrusted vendors” like Huawei pose a threat to U.S. national security, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Wednesday, offering the first indication that the Biden administration won’t roll back actions targeting the Chinese telecommunications giant.

Grassley calls for the former Iowa governor (and Biden ag secretary) to be confirmed “as soon as possible.”

President Biden’s pick for Commerce Department secretary, Gina Raimondo, on Tuesday told a Senate panel the agency under her watch would put national security first in dealing with China, but would take a step back to review Trump administration moves against Beijing.

“It has gotten harder and harder to break through the partisan gridlock and make progress on substantive policy, and that has contributed to my decision.”

Maria Pagan, deputy general counsel in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative since the Obama administration, is serving as acting USTR, the White House officials confirmed on Wednesday.

 The Rhode Island governor, tapped to serve as Commerce secretary, will be vetted on Jan. 26.

Efforts to reform the Generalized System of Preferences will provide lawmakers important clues about the Biden administration’s trade policy approach, House Ways & Means trade subcommittee Chairman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) said this week.

Reps. Kevin Hern (R-OK), Lloyd Smucker (R-PA) and Carol Miller (R-WV) were recommended by the Republican Steering Committee.

Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN), one of Capitol Hill’s most vocal critics of the Trump administration’s use of tariffs, on Tuesday said she would continue efforts to rein in executive tariff-making authority during the Biden administration.