The Administration · Cabinet-level officials
U.S. Trade Representative
A trade lawyer and former Air Force attorney who negotiates Trump's tariff deals and is rebuilding the tariff program under other laws after the Supreme Court's 2026 ruling on emergency-powers tariffs.
Jamieson Greer was born on August 16, 1980, and grew up in Paradise, California. 1 He holds a bachelor's degree in international studies from Brigham Young University, a joint master's degree in global business law from two universities in Paris, and a law degree from the University of Virginia. 2 1 He served as a lawyer in the Air Force Judge Advocate General's Corps, including a deployment to Iraq. 2 In 2012 he was hired at the law firm Skadden by Robert Lighthizer, the trade lawyer who would become Trump's first trade representative. 1
When Lighthizer took over the trade office in 2017, Greer became his chief of staff. 1 2 In that job he took part in talks with China and helped negotiate the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the Associated Press reported. 3 He left in May 2020 to become a partner at the law firm King & Spalding, working on international trade. 1 Trump announced on November 26, 2024, that he would nominate Greer as trade representative, and the Senate confirmed him 56-43 on February 26, 2025. 1 3 He is the 20th person to hold the post. 2
Greer has been at the center of Trump's tariff program. He was involved in the April 2025 tariffs on nearly all trading partners and was then sent to negotiate lower rates with Japan, according to Wikipedia's account. 1 When the Supreme Court ruled on the tariffs imposed under an emergency-powers law in February 2026, Greer announced the same day that a temporary 10 percent surcharge on imports would take effect under a different law and that his office would open new unfair-trade investigations into most major trading partners. 4 In March 2025 Trump also named him acting head of two watchdog offices. 1 8
On July 1, 2026, Greer said the United States had declined to renew the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement in its current form, which keeps the pact in force but starts yearly reviews and leaves it set to expire in July 2036 unless all three countries agree to extend it. 6 In August he warned Canada that the U.S. would act against any country that retaliates against American tariffs. 1 On November 6, 2026, he and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent held a video call with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, pressing China to carry out past commitments on farm purchases and rare earths. 5
The acts and events that have defined the post so far, oldest first.
Confirmed by the Senate 56-43 to work alongside Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Trump's trade agenda. 3
Was testifying to the Senate Finance Committee when Trump paused the newly announced worldwide tariffs, a pause Wikipedia's account says caught him by surprise. 1
On the day of the Supreme Court's ruling on emergency-powers tariffs, announced a temporary 10 percent import surcharge under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 and new Section 301 investigations into most major trading partners. 4
Said the United States would not renew the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement in its current form. The deal stays in force with annual reviews; Canada and Mexico had both wanted an extension. 6
Criticized Canada for retaliating against 2025 U.S. tariffs and said Washington would take action against any country that retaliates. 1
With Treasury Secretary Bessent, held a video call with China's Vice Premier He Lifeng and urged China to carry out past commitments on agricultural purchases, rare earths and other critical minerals. 5
What critics, courts or investigators have said, and the answer given. An allegation is not a finding.
Four House Democrats led by Rep. Ayanna Pressley wrote to Greer asking him to give up his acting posts at the Office of Special Counsel and the Office of Government Ethics. They argued one person could not do all three jobs and that the two watchdog offices oversee his own trade agency, creating a conflict of interest. 7
Their side: A White House spokesman said the president had built a team of qualified people who could hold more than one job. NBC News reported Greer's reply to the lawmakers did not commit to resigning, and that he had delegated daily control of the Office of Special Counsel to another official. 8
A Politico-affiliated news report argued that Greer's work is to make tariffs lasting, which it said sits uneasily with Republican assurances that tariffs are a bargaining tool that will come down; it quoted a Republican congressman saying he did not want tariffs to go on forever. 9
Their side: No public response found.
Trump posted that Mexico must block caravans heading north or face doubled tariffs, and he named Texas Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa in the warning. No tariff order has been issued, and the post follows Democratic midterm wins.
Sen. Susan Collins, in a tight Maine re-election race, says the administration is exempting products such as packaging, refrigeration equipment and seaweed from Canada tariffs. Her Democratic opponent says the relief falls short.
File checked Nov. 13, 2026. Something wrong or out of date? Tell the desk.
