In the past, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) was structured as an honest broker between federal agencies seeking to find consensus on difficult trade issues, but President-elect Donald Trump will now create a National Trade Council (NTC) within the White House. Media Smorgasbord President-elect Donald Trump likes competition amongst his advisors, and that includes the trade policy area. In the past, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) was structured as an honest broker between federal agencies seeking to find consensus on difficult trade issues. This did not always work as intended since the “A List” cabinet officers at State, Treasury and Defense could always intercede directly with the president. Supporters of U.S. agricultural tr...