Bush administration appointees take charge in Commerce Department

Business America, June 5, 1989

Four Bush Administration appointees to the U.S. Department of Commerce have been confirmed by the Senate and sworn in. Several others not requiring Senate confirmation also are on the job.

ITA Appointments

New officials in the Department's international Trade Administration (ITA) are:

* Eric I. Garfinkel, confirmed by the Senate as Assistant Secretary for Import Administration. He was on the transition team for President Bush and served as General Counsel of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation in 1987-88. Earlier, he held posts in the White House Office of Policy Development and in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. He also has practiced law in the intemational trade area. He was graduated from the University of Maryland and received his law degree from Emory University.

* Lisa Brennan Barry as principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration. Since 1987, she has been Vice President of the Council on Competitiveness. Between 1980 and 1986, she held positions at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative-in the final year as Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative. She was a legislative aide to U.S. Rep. Silvio Conte (RMass.) in 1979-80. She has a master's degree in foreign service from Georgetown University (1979) and a bachelor of arts degree from Bates College (1977).

* Juan Benitez as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Science and Electronics. He most recently served as President, Chief Operating Officer, and Director of Micron Technology, Inc., a semiconductor company in Boise, Idaho. Last year, he was national co-chairman of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly for the Bush-Quayle campaign. A graduate of the University of Missouri-Rolla, Benitez holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Born in Cuba, he became a U.S. citizen in 1973.

* Barbara N. McLennan as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Trade Information and Analysis. Since 1984, she has been an international Tax Specialist and Industry Economist with the Internal Revenue Service; in 1984, she was a contributor to the Treasury Department Report to the President on tax reform. In 1981-84, she was legislative assistant for finance and budget to Dan Quayle, then a U.S. Senator, now Vice President. Earlier, she worked for the House Budget Committee . . . and as a political science professor. She has a B.A. from City College of New York; M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Wisconsin; and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

* Jon M. Huntsman, Jr., as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Capital Goods and International Construction. Most recently, he served as Vice President of International Business and member of the board of directors of Huntsman Chemical Corporation. He previously served as Vice President of Huntsman's Asian subsidiary, Huntsman Pacific Chemical Corporation, in Taipei, Taiwan. He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.

* James Montgomery Roberts as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aerospace. Since 1979, he has been Washington Area Manager for Commercial and International Corporations for Lockheed Corporation. Between 1976 and 1979, he was a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. State Department. He was in the U.S. Air Force between 1966 and 1976. He has a bachelor's degree from Texas A&M (1965) and a master of arts degree from Central Michigan University.

* Linda Fairing Powers as' Deputy Assistant Secretary for Services. Most recently, she has been an attorney with the law firm of Latham & Watkins and an adjunct Professor at the Georgetown University Law Center. She also served on the transition team for President Bush. She is the founder and co-chair of the special task force on EC 1992 of the American Bar Association. In 1986-87, she was employed at the Commission of the European Communities (E.C. headquarters) in Brussels. She has a J.D. from Harvard Law School (1982) and an A.B. from Princeton (1977).

* Joseph A. Vasquez as principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service. Most recently, he was Chief Operating Officer of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Between 1982 and 1987, he directed a program at the White House Office of Management and Budget. He has a bachelor's degree in engineering sciences from the State University of New York at Stony Brook and a master of science degree from the Stony Brook Harriman College for Policy Analysis and Public Management.

* Daniel E. Sullivan as Deputy@Assistant Secretary for Domestic Operations for the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service. He recently served as Director in the Office of Private Sector Initiatives and as Deputy Director of the Office of Business Liaison in the office of the Secretary of Commerce. From 1981 to 1985, he was an assistant to the Vice President. He has an associate's degree in business administration from Broward Community College and a bachelor's degree in marketing from Florida State University.