Punke Nominated to Represent U.S. at WTO

The White House says President Obama intends to nominate Michael Punke to be U.S. ambassador to the World Trade Organization. Not having someone in this slot threatened to slow world trade talks, which appear to be ready to blossom. Punke would take over from long-time U.S. trade diplomat Peter Allgeier, who stepped down as ambassador to the WTO.

Punke began his government career in 1991 as international trade counsel to Senator Max Baucus, a Democrat who is currently chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. He was a senior policy adviser in the U.S. Trade Representative's office in the mid-1990s after a two-year stint in the White House under former President Bill Clinton.

The nomination comes as U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk is in Delhi for meetings with other top trade officials on the Doha round of world trade talks.