WCIT Blog
Trade = Development
When I'm out in the community speaking on international trade, I always use my patented line that "international business = international trade," and I list the examples of industries that folks may not think of when they think of trade: architecture, tourism...and...
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Affordable Footwear Act, But Were Afraid to Ask
As I write this series of blog posts on WCIT's policy priorities, one of the nice things is being able to draw inspiration from current news. You don't want to read State of Trade for obscure factoids...no, you want that same ripped-from-the-headlines feel that you...
Check out WCIT’s FTA Op-Ed in the Seattle Times (and Its Counterpoint)
Last Thursday, the Seattle Times featured an op-ed by yours truly, entitled “Congress must OK trade agreements to create jobs in Washington and the U.S." It's a great chance for WCIT fans to not only read about the importance of swift action on the three pending free...
Export-Import Bank: Not James Bond’s Credit Union, But Still Cool
Working in international trade is, in many ways, the same as being an international man of mystery. As one of the many, many examples of this truth, famed move spy James Bond's cover story was that he worked "in the export-import business." (His fake company was...
WCIT Has Issues
I've spent a lot of time so far on this blog talking big picture. I wanted to give you a sense of what I consider to be in the realm of policies that WCIT needs to tackle. I wanted to talk to you about how we were going to generally go about our business. And I wanted...
International Trade…Don’t Just Take My Word For it!
Do y'all remember the PBS show Reading Rainbow? The host, LeVar Burton, would talk about his book recommendations, and then say "But you don't have to take my word for it"...and the show would cut to videos of children making their own testimonials for those books....
The Import-ance of Import-ing
Sorry for the post title, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity. You should hear my schtick about the Port of Portland (or the Taco of Tacoma...it gets worse from there). But, in addition to being incredibly funny, the post title makes a vital point about the ways we...
Washington Trade Policy News Round-up: Starbucks & Ste. Michelle
It's time once again for a regular feature here on the State of Trade blog: the Washington Trade Policy News Round-Up. Or "here's a bunch of stuff about trade that I noticed and wanted to point out." It's a totally unscientific look at stories in the news that I...
What Should the Theme of the Washington Trade Conference Be?
One of the signature events of the Washington Council on International Trade was always the "Senators Conference." So called because, well, it always featured both of Washington state's U.S. Senators at a conference talking about international trade policy. For...