Mayur Patel, former chief international trade counsel to the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, has joined Hogan Lovells as a partner in the international trade and investment practice, the firm announced. As a Senate staffer, Patel played a key role in overseeing "major Trump-era trade measures," the firm said. Prior to joining the Senate, Patel worked as associate general counsel in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
President Donald Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in different appearances on the same day, said that negotiations do not need to conclude by July 8 to avoid higher reciprocal tariff rates at 12:01 July 9.
Two former general counsels from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative disagreed sharply about the need for the current aggressive tariff hikes. But Jennifer Hillman, who is helping to write amicus briefs for members of Congress challenging the legality of International Emergency Economic Powers Act tariffs, and Steven Vaughn, who served in the first Trump administration, agree what would happen if the current administration loses the case.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., and 25 other House Democrats asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to tell them by July 10 whether the administration is going to carve out baby products from tariffs on Chinese goods. In a letter publicized June 26, the members noted that Bessent said exempting baby products was under consideration on May 7, and that the president also said he would "take a look at it" in response to questions that day.
At an appearance at the Washington International Trade Association, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., criticized the Trump administration for instituting an "on-again, off-again tariff structure, that, in some instances, are higher than even the Smoot-Hawley levels."
The House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee chairman, 44 other House Republicans and Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., urged the U.S. trade representative, agriculture secretary, commerce secretary and treasury secretary to get trade partners to end digital services taxes, improve import quotas and lower tariffs in these quick negotiations, all issues that they said "we cannot delay addressing."
The House Aerospace Caucus co-chair, and 23 other Republicans, are asking the administration to preserve zero tariffs for aerospace goods that have been in place since 1979 under the Civil Aircraft Agreement, and to push for more countries to pledge to allow imports of commercial aircraft and parts duty-free. (The U.S. is one of 58 countries that follow the agreement, though since the reciprocal tariffs were imposed, most aerospace imports outside Canada, Mexico and the U.K. are facing tariffs.)
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, wanted to include trade items in the bill that extends and expands Trump income tax cuts, according to a lobbyist on trade matters.
Major Asian trading partners may be diverging as countries try to avoid U.S. tariffs jumping from 10% to rates in the mid 20s.
Producing scrubs in Haiti allows American firms to avoid 29% tariffs on pants, 16% tariffs on tops, and still import the fabric from Asia. But the trade preferences for Haiti known as HOPE/HELP expire in three months and 11 days, and Republicans who control the voting calendar are not reassuring the companies that it will be renewed on time.