WASHINGTON- The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) today announced a series of new promotions and hires to effectively implement the Biden-Harris Administration’s worker-centered trade agenda.
“I am delighted to announce these well-deserved promotions and welcome more dynamic people to USTR,” said Jamila Thompson, Chief of Staff to the U.S. Trade Representative. “These dedicated public servants will help implement our administration’s inclusive, worker-centered trade policy, meet the people we serve and represent where they are, and deliver on President Biden’s goal to build our economy from the bottom up and the middle out.”
Recent Promotions:
- Lauren Brown, Deputy Director of Scheduling and Advance
- Sung Chang, Director of Speechwriting and Senior Policy Advisor
- Jon Hurst, Special Advisor for Agriculture
- Angela Perez, Senior Spokesperson and Press Secretary
- Catherine White, Deputy Press Secretary
Recent Hires:
- Claire Blanton, Special Assistant for Special Projects
- Dr. Martha Esparza, Senior Policy Advisor for Inclusive Trade, Public Health, and Strategy
- Devontae Freeland, Special Advisor to the U.S. Trade Representative
- Khalid Sarsour, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Public Affairs
Biographies
Lauren Brown, Deputy Director of Scheduling and Advance
Lauren Brown, originally from Fullerton, California, most recently served as Special Assistant to the United States Trade Representative. Prior to this, Ms. Brown served as the Scheduling Assistant and Assistant to the Chief of Staff in Senator Alex Padilla’s (CA) office. She holds a bachelor’s degree in History and Political Science, with a focus in International Relations, from the University of California, San Diego. Lauren began her career in public service interning in Senator Dianne Feinstein’s (CA) San Diego office, going on to later serve as a legislative intern in both Congressman Josh Harder (CA-09) and Congresswoman Suzan DelBene’s (WA-01) offices.
Sung Chang, Director of Speechwriting and Senior Policy Advisor
Sung Chang serves as the Director of Speechwriting and Senior Policy Advisor at the Office of the United States Trade Representative. Mr. Chang previously served as a Senior Director for Innovation and Intellectual Property at USTR from 2017 to 2022. Prior to that, Mr. Chang was an attorney in the Office of the Chief Counsel for International Commerce at the U.S. Department of Commerce, a trade enforcement analyst at the then-Interagency Trade Enforcement Center (now the Interagency Center on Trade Implementation, Monitoring, and Enforcement), and an R. Michael Gadbaw International Law and Policy Fellow at General Electric. Mr. Chang also practiced international trade law in private practice. Sung received his J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law and his Bachelor of Science in Management from the University of Nevada, Reno. He resides in Fairfax, Virginia, with his wife and two daughters.
Jon Hurst, Special Advisor for Agriculture
Jon Hurst currently serves as Special Advisor for Agriculture. Previously, he served as Special Assistant to the Chief Agricultural Negotiator at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as well as Special Assistant for External and Intergovernmental Affairs at the United States Department of Agriculture. Prior to joining the Biden-Harris Administration, Mr. Hurst worked as a Regional Organizing Director for the North Carolina Democratic Party Coordinated Campaign and as a Field Organizer for Biden for President in South Carolina. Jon is a graduate of Vanderbilt University.
Angela Perez, Senior Spokesperson and Press Secretary
Angela Perez is the Senior Spokesperson and Press Secretary at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Prior to USTR, Ms. Perez was the Deputy Press Secretary at the Department of Commerce and served as a press assistant at the White House Press Office. Before joining the Biden-Harris Administration, she was on the Biden-Harris transition team and the 2020 Biden for President campaign as a communications assistant. A graduate of Georgetown University, Angela holds a bachelor’s degree in Government with a minor in Journalism.
Catherine White, Deputy Press Secretary
Catherine White is USTR’s Deputy Press Secretary, overseeing a portfolio that includes Labor, the Western Hemisphere, African Affairs, Agricultural Affairs and Commodity Policy, and Inclusivity and Equity. Ms. White previously served as Press Assistant at USTR. Before joining the Biden-Harris Administration, she served as Press Assistant in then-Majority Whip Jim Clyburn’s leadership office. Ms. White received her Master’s in Politics and International Studies from the University of Cambridge and her bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Philosophy from the University of South Carolina Honors College. Catherine is a proud native of the D.C. area.
Claire Blanton, Special Assistant for Special Projects
Claire Blanton previously served as a White House Advance Associate for President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, and the Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. She also worked as an Associate at Public Private Strategies and Network Manager at Small Business for America's Future, where she partnered with federal agencies to amplify the impact of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Invest in America agenda on the business community and facilitated engagements convening public and private sector leaders. Blanton received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a minor in Communication from the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. Originally from Seattle, Washington, Claire is new to Washington, D.C., and excited to join the office.
Dr. Martha Esparza, Senior Policy Advisor for Inclusive Trade, Public Health, and Strategy
Martha Esparza officially joined USTR’s Front Office as Senior Policy Advisor for Inclusive Trade, Public Health, and Strategy. Formerly a White House Fellow at USTR, Dr. Esparza is a primary care physician for refugees and the underserved and a public health researcher with publications on cardiac arrest and diabetes prevention programs. Dr. Esparza trained at the University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ, where she treated patients during the beginning of the covid pandemic, was a health policy scholar, chief resident and collaborated with the Pima County Health Department on opioid overdose prevention and policy education. Martha is a first-generation college graduate and the first physician in her family. She earned an M.D. from the University of Arizona - Phoenix, an M.P.A. from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, and a B.A. from the University of Arizona. She resides in Washington, DC with her husband Brian, her daughter Maya and elderly rescue dog, Dora.
Devontae Freeland, Special Advisor to the U.S. Trade Representative
Devontae Freeland has served as Special Advisor to the U.S. Trade Representative since May 2024. He joined the Biden-Harris White House on Inauguration Day in 2021, and has previously served in the Office of the Chief of Staff, the Racial Justice and Equity Team in the White House Counsel’s Office, and most recently as Associate Director for National Security Agency Personnel. Prior to joining the Administration, Mr. Freeland was Voting Rights Coordinator and Assistant to the Chairman at Priorities USA. He has also worked at the OECD’s International Energy Agency, as an election observer in Eastern Europe, and on the successful campaign of Congressman Pat Ryan (NY-18). Devontae holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College and a master’s degree summa cum laude from the Sorbonne, where he was a U.S. Fulbright Scholar. Fluent in Spanish and French, Freeland is a fourth-generation native of Newark, New Jersey.
Khalid Sarsour, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Public Affairs
Khalid Sarsour is the Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Public Affairs. Before coming to USTR, Mr. Sarsour worked at the Service Employees International Union where he was a Senior Digital Specialist in the Communications and Digital Departments. He served as the digital director for several of the union’s priority campaigns in California, Massachusetts, and the Midwest and worked with locals across the country to build digital into their communications and field operations. Khalid also trained union organizers and communicators nationwide in strategic messaging and digital organizing. Khalid grew up in Michigan and is an alumnus of the University of Michigan where he majored in History.
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