This is from an exchange with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai at an Atlantic Council event today (starts around 48:30):
Q: Ambassador, I wondered if you could tell us where your views overlap with those of Bob Lighthizer and where your views differ.
Tai: ... Where our views are similar, and where I find an alliance with Bob, is a commitment to the fact that we have to change our approach to trade, that the world is significantly different, and that the benefits here in the United States are not inclusive enough. Those are my words, and that's in my very much ... Democratic vocabulary. But I think that one of the really important and not foregone conclusions in the trade community internationally is that we do need to change. From my perspective, it's that we need to evolve the way we do trade. And you can't do that by yourself. You have to build that collective and that community to do it together. And I think that basing that community on a community of democracies is really important. In terms of where our views are different, I hope that that's obvious, and if it's not, I would definitely take some feedback on how I can make that more obvious.
Q: You want to throw out one example where it's different? Maybe deal with China, where do you think you're the same or different on China?
Tai: On China, I think we share a lot of the same diagnoses. I think one of the ways where Bob and I are most obviously different, again, is in rhetoric. Although, you know, Bob inside the room versus Bob outside the room can be different, just like for all of us. But you know, I think that one aspect of the Biden administration's approach, and this very much reflects President Biden's just innate internationalism, is this point of view that you have to build partnerships.
Normally I have some commentary on things Katherine Tai said (and I will have comments on other things she said at the event!), but here I just wanted to highlight the exchange because I thought people might find it interesting.
