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92–748—PDF 2014

S. HRG. 113–538 

NOMINATIONS OF DARCI L. VETTER, 

STEFAN M. SELIG, HENRY J. AARON, 

LANHEE J. CHEN, AND ALAN L. COHEN 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON FINANCE 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION 

ON THE

NOMINATIONS OF 

DARCI L. VETTER, TO BE CHIEF AGRICULTURAL NEGOTIATOR, WITH 

THE RANK OF AMBASSADOR, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE 

REPRESENTATIVE; STEFAN M. SELIG, TO BE UNDER SECRETARY FOR 

INTERNATIONAL TRADE, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE; HENRY J. 

AARON, TO BE A MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY 

BOARD (REAPPOINTMENT); LANHEE J. CHEN, TO BE A MEMBER OF 

THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD; AND ALAN L. COHEN, TO 

BE A MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD 

MAY 8, 2014 

( 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Finance 

COMMITTEE ON FINANCE 

RON WYDEN, Oregon, Chairman 

JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West Virginia 

CHARLES E. SCHUMER, New York 

DEBBIE STABENOW, Michigan 

MARIA CANTWELL, Washington 

BILL NELSON, Florida 

ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland 

SHERROD BROWN, Ohio 

MICHAEL F. BENNET, Colorado 

ROBERT P. CASEY, Jr., Pennsylvania 

MARK R. WARNER, Virginia 

ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah 

CHUCK GRASSLEY, Iowa 

MIKE CRAPO, Idaho 

PAT ROBERTS, Kansas 

MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming 

JOHN CORNYN, Texas 

JOHN THUNE, South Dakota 

RICHARD BURR, North Carolina 

JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia 

ROB PORTMAN, Ohio 

PATRICK J. TOOMEY, Pennsylvania 

JOSHUA SHEINKMAN, Staff Director 

CHRIS CAMPBELL, Republican Staff Director 

(II) 

(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

OPENING STATEMENTS 

Page 

Wyden, Hon. Ron, a U.S. Senator from Oregon, chairman, Committee on 

Finance .................................................................................................................. 1 

Stabenow, Hon. Debbie, a U.S. Senator from Michigan ....................................... 3 

Hatch, Hon. Orrin G., a U.S. Senator from Utah ................................................. 4 

Cardin, Hon. Benjamin L., a U.S. Senator from Maryland ................................. 7 

Portman, Hon. Rob, a U.S. Senator from Ohio ..................................................... 9 

Warner, Hon. Mark R., a U.S. Senator from Virginia .......................................... 10 

Brown, Hon. Sherrod, a U.S. Senator from Ohio .................................................. 11 

CONGRESSIONAL WITNESS 

Johanns, Hon. Mike, a U.S. Senator from Nebraska ............................................ 6 

ADMINISTRATION NOMINEES 

Vetter, Darci L., nominated to be Chief Agricultural Negotiator, with the 

rank of Ambassador, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 

Washington, DC ................................................................................................... 12 

Selig, Stefan M., nominated to be Under Secretary for International Trade, 

Department of Commerce, Washington, DC ...................................................... 13 

Aaron, Henry J., Ph.D., nominated to be a member of the Social Security 

Advisory Board for a term expiring September 30, 2014, and for a term 

expiring September 30, 2018 (reappointment), Social Security Administration, Baltimore, MD ............................................................................................. 15 

Chen, Lanhee J., Ph.D., nominated to be a member of the Social Security 

Advisory Board for a term expiring September 30, 2018, Social Security 

Administration, Baltimore, MD .......................................................................... 16 

Cohen, Alan L., Ph.D., nominated to be a member of the Social Security 

Advisory Board for a term expiring September 30, 2016, Social Security 

Administration, Baltimore, MD .......................................................................... 17 

ALPHABETICAL LISTING AND APPENDIX MATERIAL 

Aaron, Henry J., Ph.D.: 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 15 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 29 

Biographical information ................................................................................. 30 

Responses to questions from committee members ......................................... 47 

Brown, Hon. Sherrod: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 11 

Cardin, Hon. Benjamin L.: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 7 

Chen, Lanhee J., Ph.D.: 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 16 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 48 

Biographical information ................................................................................. 49 

Cohen, Alan L., Ph.D.: 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 17 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 61 

Biographical information ................................................................................. 63 

Responses to questions from committee members ......................................... 74 

Page

IV 

Hatch, Hon. Orrin G.: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 4 

Prepared statement with attachment ............................................................. 76 

Johanns, Hon. Mike: 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 6 

Portman, Hon. Rob: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 9 

Selig, Stefan M.: 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 13 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 82 

Biographical information ................................................................................. 84 

Responses to questions from committee members ......................................... 91 

Stabenow, Hon. Debbie: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 3 

Vetter, Darci L.: 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 12 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 99 

Biographical information ................................................................................. 101 

Warner, Hon. Mark R.: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 10 

Wyden, Hon. Ron: 

Opening statement ........................................................................................... 1 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 109 

(1) 

NOMINATIONS OF DARCI L. VETTER, TO BE 

CHIEF AGRICULTURAL NEGOTIATOR, WITH 

THE RANK OF AMBASSADOR, OFFICE 

OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE 

REPRESENTATIVE; STEFAN M. SELIG, TO 

BE UNDER SECRETARY FOR INTERNATIONAL 

TRADE, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE; 

HENRY J. AARON, TO BE A MEMBER OF THE 

SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD 

(REAPPOINTMENT); LANHEE J. CHEN, TO BE 

A MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY 

ADVISORY BOARD; AND ALAN L. COHEN, 

TO BE A MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY 

ADVISORY BOARD 

THURSDAY, MAY 8, 2014 

U.S. SENATE, 

COMMITTEE ON FINANCE, 

Washington, DC. 

The hearing was convened, pursuant to notice, at 10:05 a.m., in 

room SD–215, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Ron Wyden 

(chairman of the committee) presiding. 

Present: Senators Stabenow, Cardin, Brown, Warner, Hatch, 

Grassley, Crapo, Thune, Isakson, and Portman. 

Also present: Democratic Staff: Joshua Sheinkman, Staff Director; Michael Evans, General Counsel; Jocelyn Moore, Deputy Staff 

Director; Tiffany Smith, Senior Tax Counsel; Tom Klouda, Senior 

Domestic Policy Advisor; Jayme White, Chief Advisor for International Competitiveness and Innovation; and Anderson Heiman, 

International Competitiveness and Innovation Advisor. Republican 

Staff: Chris Campbell, Staff Director; Everett Eissenstat, Chief 

International Trade Counsel; Jeff Wrase, Chief Economist; and 

Nicholas Wyatt, Tax and Nominations Professional Staff Member. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. RON WYDEN, A U.S. SENATOR 

FROM OREGON, CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON FINANCE 

The CHAIRMAN. The Finance Committee will come to order. 

Today the committee has before it five nominees, all of whom have 

exceptional backgrounds and expertise in their fields. Their commitment to public service is truly admirable and an example for all 

to follow. 

2 

First up will be Stefan Selig, who is nominated to be Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade. In this role, Mr. Selig 

would oversee the International Trade Administration at the Department of Commerce. ITA’s focus is on the competitiveness of 

American businesses. The agency plays a key role in American 

trade policy by working with the private sector to identify export 

and investment opportunities and by enforcing our trade remedy 

laws that are central to combating unfair trade. 

Mr. Selig is well-suited to take on this challenge. He knows how 

to navigate the global economy, and he understands what our businesses need to be competitive. If confirmed, he must ensure that 

we step up enforcement of our trade remedy laws. 

Next, we will hear from Darci Vetter, a Finance Committee alum 

who has been nominated to be Chief Agricultural Negotiator at the 

Office of the United States Trade Representative. If confirmed, Ms. 

Vetter will have the important task of being the lead trade negotiator to take on the tariff and nontariff barriers that are imposed 

all over the world on American agricultural exports. 

Our country has an ambitious trade agenda, with important agricultural negotiations taking place among the world’s biggest and 

most dynamic markets. It will be important for the United States 

to have a skilled hand in these negotiations, and Darci, in my view, 

is the right person at the right time. 

Right now, for example, our country is in the middle of important 

yet challenging negotiations with Japan and other Trans-Pacific 

Partnership participants regarding America’s most important agricultural crops: wheat—especially important to my home State of 

Oregon—dairy, and poultry. We will be relying on Darci to push for 

the comprehensive and ambitious outcome that our farmers and 

our producers expect and our economy needs. 

Also with us are three nominees for the Social Security Advisory 

Board: Drs. Henry Aaron, Lanhee Chen, and Alan Cohen. 

The Board is responsible for advising the President and the Congress on Social Security policy, and regularly makes important policy recommendations to enhance economic security for individuals, 

to maintain the solvency of the Social Security programs, and to 

improve services for seniors and other beneficiaries. In my view, all 

three have excellent credentials and, if confirmed, would bring an 

impressive and diverse set of perspectives to the Board. 

The Board plays a key role in the Social Security policy process, 

producing top-notch bipartisan reports on a range of issues, and yet 

the Board has not had a full seven members since September of 

2008. This is unacceptable, given the numerous challenges facing 

the program today and in the future. The Congress certainly shares 

some of the blame here, but we now have a chance to set things 

right. 

First we have Henry Aaron. Dr. Aaron has had an illustrious career in both the public sector and academia, including over 45 

years with the Brookings Institution. I commend the President for 

this excellent choice. 

Dr. Aaron is one of the country’s foremost experts on Social Security, and his many publications and contributions to the program 

make him an invaluable asset. And it is with a bit of disappointment that I note that this is Dr. Aaron’s second appearance before 

3 

the committee. His previous nomination was the first ever to have 

votes against it in committee, and I think that is regrettable. 

We have three nominees before us today. In my view, they are 

all well-qualified and hold strong views. Individual Senators may 

disagree with those views, but that disagreement should not cause 

the committee to oppose their service on this important and, I 

would note, bipartisan Advisory Board. I urge my colleagues to 

support all three nominees so we can get the Board back to full 

strength. 

Next is Mr. Lanhee Chen, also nominated to the Social Security 

Board. Dr. Chen, in my view, has a stellar academic record and has 

made valuable contributions in a number of policy fields, including 

Social Security. If confirmed, he will bring a distinct and valuable 

perspective to the Board. 

Finally, we have Alan Cohen. Dr. Cohen has had a long and 

prestigious career in public service. We all know him from these 

very rooms, from the halls outside the Finance Committee. We 

thank him for his decade of service here on the Finance Committee. 

His knowledge of budgetary matters and Social Security is simply unmatched, and I know that personally, because I have asked 

for his counsel on many occasions. His wide range of experiences 

in both the Congress and the Federal Government give him a level 

of expertise and insight the Board will surely benefit from. 

In short, all of the nominees here today are well-qualified to take 

on the challenging tasks before them, and my hope is that they will 

be confirmed as soon as possible. 

Senator Hatch, our ranking member, is not here. When he arrives, he will give his opening statement, so I want all witnesses 

and members to know that when Senator Hatch arrives, he will 

give his opening statement. 

[The prepared statement of Chairman Wyden appears in the appendix.] 

The CHAIRMAN. I would also like to note that Senator Stabenow 

is very much under the gun today and would like to say a few 

words. She, of course, is the chair of the Agriculture Committee. 

And I think you wanted, Senator Stabenow, to say a few words 

about Ms. Vetter and your relationship with her. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. DEBBIE STABENOW, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM MICHIGAN 

Senator STABENOW. I did. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, for allowing me. We all juggle committees, and today I am doing that. 

And I just first want to say that I strongly support all of our 

nominees and welcome you to the committee. It is great to see also 

Senator Johanns, a distinguished member of our Agriculture Committee, who, by the way, was a leading voice in establishing a new 

trade leader within USDA. So it is wonderful to have you with us. 

But I did, Mr. Chairman, want to speak specifically about Ms. 

Vetter, Darci Vetter. We are so fortunate to have her today, and 

I am happy to join the 97 farm and food organizations who have 

endorsed her nomination. 

I witnessed firsthand in Brazil last summer, traveling with Darci 

and with the Secretary, as well as during the Farm Bill negotiaVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:07 Jan 30, 2015 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 R:\DOCS\92748.000 TIMD
4 

tions, her skill and the fact that she is a fierce advocate for farmers 

and ranchers and rural communities. 

And so we have a lot of challenges. You and I have had the opportunity—I appreciate it—in my office to talk about what is happening as it relates to Asia, Europe, South America, and all the 

other areas. 

I am very, very confident in Ms. Vetter’s abilities, and so, just 

to my colleagues on the committee, I wanted to lend a strong endorsement of support. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Our colleague, Senator Hatch, is here, and we 

would welcome his remarks. And, as we have done since I became 

chair, we are going to work on these nominees in a bipartisan way. 

That is the way we are going to work on everything here. 

Senator Hatch, we welcome your statement. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. ORRIN G. HATCH, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM UTAH 

Senator HATCH. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate you 

and your openness. I want to thank you for holding today’s hearings. And I also want to thank our nominees for joining us. And 

to begin, I would like to talk about our trade nominees. 

I believe both of these nominees are extremely qualified and 

well-suited to the tasks ahead of them. Mr. Selig, let me start with 

you. 

As you know, I, along with former Chairman Baucus and Chairman Camp, introduced the bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities Act of 2014 in January. Commerce Secretary Pritzker recommended the introduction of the bill and said that it would, 

quote, ‘‘help in efforts to expand market access for American businesses, ensure a level playing field for companies selling their 

goods abroad, and support the creation of more American jobs,’’ unquote. 

Unfortunately, the rest of the administration has not been so 

vocal. As you know, Trade Promotion Authority, which our bill 

would renew, is how Congress establishes the objectives for U.S. 

trade negotiations, sets consultation requirements for the administration, and assures our trading partners that a completed deal 

will have a path for consideration by Congress. 

And frankly, Mr. Selig, without TPA, the President’s trade agenda, which is extremely ambitious, will fail. I hope you share this 

sense of urgency and that, if confirmed, you will be a strong advocate for renewing TPA in short order. 

Now, Mr. Chairman, if I might, I would like to make one observation about Mr. Selig’s nomination that should not go unnoticed. 

As I understand Mr. Selig’s background, he worked as a top executive at Bank of America during the most recent financial crisis. At 

times he received bonuses for the work he performed there, and, 

as we all know, many who worked on Wall Street in a similar capacity have been castigated by President Obama and by Democrats 

in Congress, often labeled as, quote, ‘‘fat cats’’ and the like. 

On top of that, Mr. Selig has significant investments in overseas 

accounts. We have learned that Mr. Selig was an investor in a 

partnership called, ‘‘Sun Capital Partners V,’’ which in 2010 was 

5 

domiciled in the Walker House of 87 Mary Street, George Town, 

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. In 2012, this partnership was 

domiciled at the now-infamous Ugland House. Mr. Selig’s Schedule 

2012 K–1 notes that the value of his ending capital account was 

$721,802. 

Mr. Selig was also invested in a partnership called Conversus 

Capital, of Trafalgar Court, Les Banques, St. Peter Port, Guernsey, 

Channel Islands. Mr. Selig’s Schedule 2012 K–1 notes that the 

value of his ending capital account was $1,123,523. Now, this is not 

the first of President Obama’s nominees to come before this committee to have these types of earnings and investments, all of 

whom were gladly and unanimously supported by my friends on 

the other side of the aisle. 

Now, let me be clear. I do not believe that Mr. Selig has done 

anything wrong. I do not condemn those who make their living on 

Wall Street, and as long as they have paid their taxes, I do not 

have a problem with anyone who makes a foreign investment. 

However, the obvious hypocrisy of the President and some of his 

supporters in Congress should not go unnoticed. Indeed, we all remember during the 2012 campaign when President Obama characterized these types of investments as, quote, ‘‘betting against America.’’ 

Now, I suspect that the vast majority of Democrats in the Senate 

will vote to confirm Mr. Selig, as they should, and as I will. I think 

we are lucky to have people of his qualifications in these jobs. Yet 

I doubt that the class warfare rhetoric against Wall Street, against 

success in the private sector, and against overseas investments, 

will slow down at all. 

Like I said, this is not a knock against Mr. Selig, or anyone else, 

for that matter. I simply believe that the inconsistency and unfair, 

open attacks often levied against people who have done similar 

work in the private sector should not go unnoticed. 

That said, let us move on to talk about Ms. Vetter’s nomination. 

Ms. Vetter, as you know from your current position as Deputy Undersecretary at the Department of Agriculture, the tasks ahead of 

the Chief Agricultural Negotiator are really daunting. 

The success of the Trans-Pacific Partnership hinges on achieving 

a full and comprehensive agreement on agricultural products with 

Japan. And this is what has me concerned. Japan has reportedly 

sought to exclude more than 500 agricultural product tariff lines 

from eventual tariff elimination, and this would be unprecedented. 

The United States is party to 17 free trade agreements, and only 

33 tariff lines have ever been excluded from tariff reduction. 

Now, that is 33 lines total, across all 17 free trade agreements. 

Japan is seeking more than 500 in a single agreement. Now, other 

nations are undoubtedly watching how the U.S. will address this 

issue. If Japan is allowed to exclude products from liberalization, 

other TPP countries will soon follow, resulting in an even weaker 

agreement. The member states of the European Union are also 

watching. If the administration makes concessions to Japan, every 

other nation we negotiate with well into the future will demand 

similar treatment. 

Well, if confirmed, I hope you will be able to achieve a breakthrough with Japan soon. It is far more important to get this deal 

6 

right than to get it done now, and I expect you will continue negotiating until you have reached an agreement on full and comprehensive liberalization with Japan. 

These are just some of the issues you will have to deal with as 

our Chief Agricultural Negotiator. I do not envy you, in many 

ways. I look forward to hearing your views on these matters during 

today’s hearing. 

Finally, Mr. Chairman, three of the nominees before us are for 

positions on the Social Security Advisory Board. These are important positions, particularly given the challenges facing the Social 

Security system. Of course, Dr. Aaron has already appeared before 

us, having been previously nominated to serve as Chairman of the 

Advisory Board. My previous comments on his nomination still 

hold, and out of a desire to ensure that partisanship be kept at a 

minimum on the Board, I do not intend to support Dr. Aaron’s renomination. 

Mr. Chairman, I ask permission that my prior remarks about Dr. 

Aaron’s nomination be included in the record at this point. 

The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, so ordered. 

Senator HATCH. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

[Senator Hatch’s remarks appear in the appendix on p. 79.] 

Senator HATCH. Our other two nominees to the Social Security 

Advisory Board, Dr. Chen and Dr. Cohen, like our two trade nominees, appear to be well-qualified and well-suited to serve in this 

important capacity. I look forward to hearing from them today. 

And, as you can see, Mr. Chairman, we have a lot on our plate 

today, so I want to thank you again for your leadership in these 

areas. I think it means a lot to our country. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Hatch. 

[The prepared statement of Senator Hatch appears in the appendix.] 

The CHAIRMAN. And our first nominee will be Darci Vetter, nominated for Chief Agricultural Negotiator with the Office of the U.S. 

Trade Representative. We would like you—it is a tradition here at 

the Finance Committee to introduce your family, Ms. Vetter. 

Ms. VETTER. I am pleased to have with me today my husband, 

Jason Hafemeister, to support me, and I am very thankful for his 

sacrifice, support, and his flexibility as we both pursue two careers 

and support two small children. So thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Emphasis on flexibility. [Laughter.] 

Ms. VETTER. Exactly. 

The CHAIRMAN. And we are glad that you all are here. And suffice it to say, Ms. Vetter, you have one of our most respected colleagues—you are certainly running with the right crowd when you 

have Senator Johanns with you. And I think we would like him to 

introduce you at this time. 

STATEMENT OF HON. MIKE JOHANNS, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM NEBRASKA 

Senator JOHANNS. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member Hatch and members of the 

Finance Committee, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to be here 

this morning to introduce a friend and a colleague through the 

years, Darci Vetter. 

7 

Darci grew up on a farm near Marquette, NE, and I might add, 

it is still operated by the Vetter family. Her background is enormously impressive. She has worked on agricultural trade issues at 

USTR, and I might add, on this committee and now at the United 

States Department of Agriculture. 

Now USTR wants her back, and I have to tell you that is with 

very, very good reason. I have seen firsthand Darci’s commitment 

to U.S. agriculture, starting when I was the Secretary of Agriculture in 2005. We worked together on negotiating and implementing trade agreements, breaking down trade barriers, and promoting United States agriculture. 

She helped to build the strong link between USTR and USDA, 

which is absolutely critical for trade negotiations. I am confident 

that she will once again be a bridge-builder and be a great asset 

to USTR and, more significantly, to United States agriculture in 

general. 

We need to open more markets around the world to our products. 

She is the person for the job. She is bright, she is capable, she 

knows agriculture, she knows trade, and she is up to the challenge. 

So I want to wish Darci the best. I urge the committee to support 

her nomination for Chief Agricultural Negotiator at USTR, as I will 

enthusiastically do myself. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Johanns. I share your views 

about Ms. Vetter, and she is lucky to have you in her corner. And 

we thank you. 

Our second nominee is Mr. Stefan Selig, nominated to be Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade. Mr. Selig, can you 

introduce your family? 

Mr. SELIG. Yes, Senator, thank you. 

I have with me today my wife of 13 years, Heidi Selig, seated 

right behind me. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. Welcome. 

Next up we have Henry Aaron, nominated for the Social Security 

Advisory Board. Dr. Aaron, I understand you have your family 

here. 

Dr. AARON. Part of my family. My wife is here. My wife of 51 

years, Ruth—who is seated immediately behind me, backing me up 

as usual, as I try to back her up. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. And I think Dr. Aaron will now be introduced by Senator Cardin. 

Senator Cardin? 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM MARYLAND 

Senator CARDIN. Well, Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. And 

there are two reasons that I am very pleased to introduce Dr. 

Aaron. 

First, Dr. Aaron resides in the District of Columbia, which does 

not have resident Senators. The land was originally from Maryland, so Senator Mikulski and I at times adopt those from the District as our own. I know that Senator Warner may take some exception to that. [Laughter.] But in this case, I am very honored to 

introduce Dr. Aaron. 

8 

I have known Dr. Aaron for many, many years, and I want the 

leadership of this committee to know that I have considered Dr. 

Aaron to be a straight-talker, working with members of Congress 

on both sides of the aisle, trying to build bridges to deal with not 

only the short-term needs of the Social Security program, but also 

the longer-term needs. I value his recommendations and judgment 

and find him to be, as I said, a person of incredible knowledge, as 

the chairman pointed out. 

He has had a long and distinguished career in public service, research, and education. He first joined Brookings Institution’s staff 

in 1968, and he is currently the Bruce and Virginia MacLaury Senior Fellow in economic studies. 

Let me just point out some of his incredible career. As we all 

know, he has been chair of the board of directors of the National 

Academy of Social Insurance. He has authored eight books on Social Security and retirement policy and countless thoughtful and eloquent articles on this topic. The breadth and depth of his knowledge are well-known by national policy-makers who seek his expertise and his ideas on improving Social Security and Americans’ retirement security, and I think he is the ideal nominee. 

I want to point out that he previously has been on the faculty 

at the University of Maryland. Whenever I can get a plug in for 

the University of Maryland, I will. 

He has served as Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation in the predecessor of the Department of Health and Human 

Services. During the academic year 1996 to 1997, he was the 

Guggenheim fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University. 

He graduated from UCLA, and he holds a Ph.D. in economics 

from Harvard University. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine, the Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the advisory committee at Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research. I could 

go on and on and on. 

He is not only well-qualified, he has been involved in our political 

system to try to make a difference in a positive way, in a thoughtful, academic way, and I think he is ideally suited for the position 

he seeks. And I thank him and all of our nominees for being willing 

to continue in public service. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Cardin. And I am also 

struck by the fact that, because of your expertise on these issues, 

I think your viewpoints count a great deal. And one of the reasons 

that I think your views are listened to is because you have shown 

great bipartisanship over the years, particularly with Senator 

Portman, going back to the days when we were all in the House. 

And I very much appreciate that, and I think it also highlights the 

bipartisan focus here this morning, because our next nominee for 

the Social Security Board is Lanhee Chen. 

And, Dr. Chen, can you introduce your family? 

Dr. CHEN. Yes, thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

I am very grateful to have many members of my family here 

from California. This is my wife, Cynthia. With due respect to the 

gentlemen on the panel, I think the best-dressed guy in the room 

is my 3-year-old son Tobin, who is here with us today as well. 

[Laughter.] 

9 

The CHAIRMAN. That is saying something. Senator Hatch is pretty dapper. [Laughter.] 

Dr. CHEN. It is. With apologies to Senator Hatch as well. 

My brother Julius is next to her, and then my parents, Dr. and 

Mrs. Chung-Lien and Ya-Mei Chen, are also here from California. 

The CHAIRMAN. We are glad that the extended Chen family is 

here. 

Senator Portman, we are glad you are going to introduce Dr. 

Chen. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. ROB PORTMAN, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM OHIO 

Senator PORTMAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Senator Hatch, 

for letting me do that. And although the California members may 

take offense, we have to consider Dr. Chen to be an honorary Buckeye, which I will get to in a moment, because he has Ohio roots, 

ultimately. 

But I am really glad that Lanhee is willing to do this. He is a 

talented guy. I have had the pleasure to work with him over the 

years. This is a really important appointment, serving on this 

Board at this time. And I am glad Dr. Aaron is also willing to step 

forward, whom Ben Cardin and I have both worked with over the 

years. 

We do face these rising entitlement costs. We do have to do 

something about the long-term viability of these programs. We 

need smart people who are willing to look at this objectively and 

to help ensure that future generations can rely on this important 

program. And it is at a time when, frankly, the country faces dire 

financial straits outside of Social Security, which makes it even 

more difficult. So I am delighted he is willing to do it. 

I want to mention, if I could, the fact that his 3-month-old 

daughter, Adeline, is not with us, but she is also part of the supportive team. And apparently she was not too happy about that, either, not being invited today. 

But his family is just the classic American story. This family you 

see behind him here, his parents immigrated from Taiwan in the 

1970s, and they came here to seek opportunity, to finish their educations. They came separately, but it was the State of Ohio that 

brought them together. And they met while his mom was earning 

her master’s degree at the University of Akron and his dad was 

working on his medical training in Ohio to be a doctor. So, again, 

we consider Lanhee to be an honorary Buckeye. And here they are, 

sitting behind you and witnessing the first step in their son becoming a presidential nominee. 

It is easy to see why Lanhee has been asked to do this. He is 

a guy who has a great background. He is a research fellow at the 

Hoover Institution, and he teaches at Stanford’s Public Policy Law 

School. He has a great academic background in health care and has 

also been involved in retirement security and Social Security. He 

has been a policy advisor for a lot of high-profile political leaders. 

And his educational background is not too bad, either. He got a 

bachelor’s degree from Harvard; he got a master’s degree from Harvard; he got a doctorate from Harvard; he got a law degree from 

10 

Harvard. He spent enough time in Cambridge to be given tenure 

at Harvard. [Laughter.] 

But this extensive background and his intelligence and expertise 

will be really valuable as we look at one of our most pressing issues 

that we must address. So I am very proud to be here to introduce 

him and to support his nomination to be a member of the Social 

Security Advisory Board. 

And if you could, Mr. Chairman, indulge me for a second, because Darci Vetter is here. And both Darci and her husband, 

Jason, I had the honor of working with at USTR, and they were 

two of the real stars at an agency that does attract some of the best 

and brightest. Even there, they stood out. 

So again, good luck to you, Ms. Vetter, in your nomination. And 

good to see Jason back here in the halls of Congress. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Portman. 

Dr. Chen, I would only say, with that kind of ringing endorsement from Senator Portman, you can almost take the rest of the 

day off. [Laughter.] Not quite, but almost. So we are happy to have 

Senator Portman’s comments. 

And now our final nominee for the Social Security Advisory 

Board is Alan Cohen. Dr. Cohen, introduce your family, if you 

would. 

Dr. COHEN. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. My brother, 

Barry Cohen, is here. My partner, Valerie Nelkin is here. My 

friend, Arthur Friedman is here, and my friends Pat Malloy and 

Jim Frisk are in the audience as well. 

The CHAIRMAN. The Cohen caucus. We are glad they are here. 

I think Senator Warner is going to introduce Dr. Cohen. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. MARK R. WARNER, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM VIRGINIA 

Senator WARNER. Yes, I will. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Let me 

just echo one thing that Dr. Chen has said, and I say this with 

some trepidation, being this far down the aisle. I would normally 

agree that Senator Hatch is far and away the best-dressed, but 

looking at Dr. Chen’s son, Orrin, he has a mean vest and a pocket 

square that any of us would be proud of, and I am not sure even 

you could carry off. 

Senator HATCH. I am really embarrassed with the clothing I wore 

today. [Laughter.] 

Senator WARNER. Let me say something about my friend, Alan 

Cohen, who may not be at the same sartorial level, but brings 

other extraordinary talents, as has already been indicated by the 

chairman. 

I have known Alan for many, many years. We both live in Alexandria; he has been active in the community in a variety of ways. 

As you have already pointed out, Alan has an outstanding 33-year 

career as a public servant, where he has worked on Social Security 

and budget issues in many different areas and many different capacities in government. 

I have had the opportunity to actually work with him at a local 

level in Alexandria, where he has helped our local city work on 

budget issues. Obviously, many on this committee are familiar with 

11 

him because of his work with both the Senate Budget Committee 

and the Finance Committee. 

He has served in the executive branch at both Treasury and 

HHS. He has worked under two administrations, both the Carter 

administration and the Reagan administration. Obviously, there 

are very few folks who have that kind of background and tenure 

and knowledge around budget issues, around entitlement issues, 

around Social Security issues. I think he is going to be a great 

member of this Advisory Board. 

And I would echo what Senator Portman said, as someone who 

recognizes that these programs, particularly Social Security, may 

be the best programs any government in any nation has ever implemented. But unfortunately, the math around them is changing 

dramatically because of the aging of our population. And we are 

going to need bipartisan advice as we try to make sure that we 

maintain the promise of Social Security for future generations. 

So again, Alan is well-known to this committee, and I recommend him wholeheartedly. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you. 

Senator Brown, I know, is under a time crunch this morning as 

well, and he would like to make some quick comments. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. SHERROD BROWN, 

A U.S. SENATOR FROM OHIO 

Senator BROWN. Since every other member has introduced somebody and I do not have anybody left—— 

The CHAIRMAN. You feel deprived. 

Senator BROWN. Ms. Vetter was actually born in Kettering, OH, 

so—you left that one out, Rob. [Laughter.] 

Anyway, I appreciate the chance to just say 2 minutes of comments about this hearing and this Social Security Advisory Board. 

I am concerned about this Board, really since the attempts at 

privatization of Social Security in the middle part of the last decade. I am concerned about the sort of too-fractious nature of the Social Security Advisory Board. It is not always able to reach the consensus that it used to reach. 

I carry a letter in my pocket, to the grandfather of an employee 

in my office, sent December 1936 from his employer in Pennsylvania about the beginnings of Social Security. We are going to start 

taking 1 percent out of your salary, then 2 percent, 3 percent, and 

you are going to get this money back when you are 65—although 

most people did not live to 65 then. Think about how controversial 

that was. 

But the point is, we came to consensus in this country on Social 

Security. I understand what Senator Warner and Senator Portman 

said about what some call the sustainability. But I also know we 

know how to fix these things. 

My admonition to the three nominees is that you work hard on 

consensus, coming to consensus, in that committee; that we do not 

see abstentions. You put such important information out for the 

public, on big issues and smaller issues, and we really do rely on 

that, policy-makers and the public. 

12 

And what you publish outside of your job—I mean, a number of 

you. All of you are articulate, very smart spokespeople for what you 

believe in. But it is important that when you make these statements, if it undermines Social Security as a public social insurance 

program, if your comments do that, you are doing it as a member 

of this Advisory Board, even if you are doing it as a private citizen. 

So that is my admonition to the three of you, that I hope you will 

always consider carefully what you publish outside of your specific 

job here on the Advisory Board, and that you will work to reach 

consensus. I hope you will make a special effort to do that. 

Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Brown. 

Senator Grassley is the only Senator who has not had anything 

to say. Would you like to wait for questions, or would you like to 

say anything? Senator Grassley will wait for questions. Very good. 

Let us proceed then with Ms. Vetter. We thank all of our nominees. Our usual practice is that all of your prepared statements 

will automatically be made part of the record. If you could take 5 

minutes or so to summarize, we will start with Ms. Vetter, and we 

will go right down the line. 

Ms. Vetter? 

STATEMENT OF DARCI L. VETTER, NOMINATED TO BE CHIEF 

AGRICULTURAL NEGOTIATOR, WITH THE RANK OF AMBASSADOR, OFFICE OF THE U.S. TRADE REPRESENTATIVE, 

WASHINGTON, DC 

Ms. VETTER. Thank you very much. Chairman Wyden, Ranking 

Member Hatch, and members of the Senate Finance Committee, 

thank you so much for welcoming me here today. And Senator 

Johanns, I thank you for that kind introduction earlier. 

I am very honored to be considered by this committee as President Obama’s nominee to be the Chief Agricultural Negotiator at 

the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. 

I want to reiterate my thanks and to recognize my husband, 

Jason Hafemeister, who is with me this morning. He is a fantastic 

partner, as we both pursue careers in public service and raise our 

two beautiful children. I also have close friends, Marney Cheek, 

Carissa Kovner, and Liz Rider here with me this morning. 

As an alumna of the Senate Finance Committee, I have had the 

great privilege of working with many of the members and the staff 

on this committee. And, during my time at USTR working on agricultural and environmental issues, and at USDA as the Deputy 

Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, it has 

always been clear to me that the executive branch and Congress 

must maintain a close working relationship on trade issues. This 

is a relationship I intend to strengthen in my new capacity, should 

I be confirmed. 

I grew up on a family farm in Nebraska, where my family also 

operates a grain processing business that exposed me to the benefits of trade at a very early age. In the 1980s, at a time when many 

farmers were moving off the farm, my family found foreign markets 

to sustain our family business. Some of our first foreign customers 

were tofu makers in Japan who were willing to pay a premium for 

our high-quality soybeans. Today, our family business has nearly 

13 

30 employees, thanks in part to open and reliable overseas markets. 

Through both my personal and my professional experiences, I 

have witnessed firsthandthe benefits of trade for American agricultural producers. I am committed to leveling the playing field for 

our farmers and ranchers and holding our trading partners accountable by enforcing trade rules to ensure our products are treated fairly. Using all the tools at our discretion, including the Dispute Settlement Body at the World Trade Organization, I intend to 

press our trading partners to make decisions based on science and 

to eliminate unwarranted sanitary and phytosanitary measures 

that restrict safe, wholesome U.S. agricultural products from entering their markets. 

The United States is the world’s largest agricultural export economy. U.S. food and agricultural exports reached an all-time high in 

2013, accounting for $148 billion in exports, but I believe there is 

much more that we can accomplish. 

If confirmed, I am excited to join a dedicated team that is working on one of the most ambitious trade agendas in decades. The 

trade agenda holds great potential for made-in-America agricultural goods. I am committed to advancing our ongoing negotiations 

in TPP and in TTIP, where we are pursuing high-standard trade 

agreements that will create significant new market access opportunities for U.S. agriculture. Eliminating tariffs and unwanted SPS 

and technical barriers to trade on agricultural products will ensure 

that our producers can continue to export high-quality, safe American food and agricultural products. 

Finally, I look forward to working with you, Chairman Wyden, 

Ranking Member Hatch, and the members of this committee, to secure Trade Promotion Authority that has as broad a bipartisan 

support as possible. If confirmed, I look forward to working with 

Ambassador Michael Froman and Congress to further opportunities 

around the world for U.S. agriculture. 

Again, I thank the President for this opportunity and the committee for considering my nomination, and I am happy to answer 

any questions you might have. 

Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Ms. Vetter. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Vetter appears in the appendix.] 

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Selig? 

STATEMENT OF STEFAN M. SELIG, NOMINATED TO BE UNDER 

SECRETARY FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE, DEPARTMENT OF 

COMMERCE, WASHINGTON, DC 

Mr. SELIG. Chairman Wyden, Ranking Member Hatch, and members of the committee, I am honored to be under consideration for 

Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade. 

During the past weeks, I have had the opportunity to meet with 

many of you to discuss international trade and investment and the 

International Trade Administration which, if confirmed, I would 

have the privilege of leading. Thank you for your time and for sharing your thoughts and insights. 

As we seek to strengthen our Nation’s recovering economy by creating jobs through expanded trade, increased business investment, 

14 

and the enforcement of fair trade practices, your ongoing partnership will be critical, and I look forward to working with you, if confirmed. 

I bring nearly 30 years of business and finance experience, working with companies in the private sector to create value. And I am 

honored that President Obama and Commerce Secretary Pritzker 

believe that I have the talent, energy, and ability to lead the ITA, 

the premier government resource for American companies competing in the global marketplace. 

Throughout my career, I have built and maintained trusted strategic relationships with executives from companies around the 

world. I have advised clients across all industries on how to take 

advantage of global investment opportunities, and I have worked 

closely with companies as they have combined their businesses to 

form new ventures. I have negotiated complex agreements, facilitated transformational deals, and developed partnerships among 

global entities. This background would serve me well if I were to 

be confirmed as Under Secretary of Commerce for International 

Trade. 

In addition, my experience directing teams across geographic regions while serving as executive vice chairman of global corporate 

and investment banking at Bank of America should be highly useful in managing an organization of more than 2,100 dedicated public servants in more than a hundred cities across our country and 

77 countries throughout the world. If confirmed, I will work closely 

with ITA’s experts to develop strategies to increase U.S. exports, 

boost growth, and support good jobs throughout the United States. 

With 95 percent of the world’s consumers residing outside of our 

borders, it is critical that we get U.S. businesses, especially small 

and mid-sized companies, to expand their strategic vision to include opportunities in the global markets. The health of the American economy and the American worker is more closely tied to global markets than ever before, and our country can no longer rely on 

just our domestic markets for growth and jobs. We can and should 

be exporting more. 

An additional responsibility of the position for which I have been 

nominated is to attract, retain, and expand foreign direct investment in the United States. While the United States remains the 

world’s largest economy and the most popular destination for foreign investment, there are a number of positive secular trends that 

should allow us to attract even more inbound investment to the 

United States. 

My career has been spent advocating for my clients so they can 

accomplish their strategic goals, and, if confirmed as Under Secretary, I will employ this very same impassioned advocacy as a 

voice for U.S. businesses and workers, economic development organizations, municipalities, communities, and other organizations. 

Finally, if confirmed, I will ensure that Commerce continues and 

builds upon its commitment to the strong enforcement of our trade 

laws, ensuring that our domestic industries and workers are not 

harmed from unfairly traded imports or unfair trade practices. I 

will also work to address and remove trade barriers that impede 

U.S. exporters and investors from competing fairly abroad. 

15 

In closing, I believe very strongly that we must do everything we 

can to help American companies, regardless of their size, succeed 

in the global marketplace. We also must continue to reinforce the 

message that American goods and services are second to none and 

that the United States remains the most attractive destination for 

business investment. 

I am truly honored to be considered for the opportunity to serve 

my country as Under Secretary of Commerce for International 

Trade, and I look forward to taking your questions. 

The CHAIRMAN. We will have some momentarily. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Selig appears in the appendix.] 

The CHAIRMAN. Dr. Aaron? 

STATEMENT OF HENRY J. AARON, Ph.D., NOMINATED TO BE A 

MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD, SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, BALTIMORE, MD 

Dr. AARON. Thank you very much. 

Senator Wyden, Senator Hatch, committee members, I too am 

honored and pleased to have been renominated by President 

Obama for membership on the Social Security Advisory Board. And 

I am grateful to this committee for holding these hearings, not only 

on my nomination, but also on Dr. Cohen’s and Dr. Chen’s. I very 

much hope that the committee and the full Senate will confirm all 

three of us so that the Board once again will have a full complement of members. 

My interest in Social Security is now in its 6th decade. It began 

with my doctoral dissertation, completed in 1963. I have worked on 

many subjects over my career, including tax policy, housing policy, 

government budget issues and health care policies. I have a list of 

my work on Social Security, culled from my resume, which I ask 

be included in the record, along with my remarks. 

The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, Dr. Aaron, that will be included. 

[Dr. Aaron’s list of work on Social Security appears in the appendix on p. 43.] 

Dr. AARON. Thank you. 

The most recent addition to that list is a paper I presented at 

a conference of international experts on the challenges posed by 

population aging, sponsored by Japan’s Ministry of Finance and the 

Asian Development Bank, which met in March, at which I was 

asked to represent the United States. 

I believe that my work on topics in addition to Social Security 

is an asset that enables me to consider the issues of Social Security 

policy in the broad budget and policy context, not as an isolated entity. 

My career has also included many activities in addition to that, 

in teaching and research. Early in my career, during the administration of President Richard Nixon, I was appointed by thenSecretary of Housing and Urban Development Carla Hills to chair 

a review committee on housing allowance experiments, the precursor of section 8 housing. I chaired the 1979 Advisory Council on 

Social Security, a bipartisan panel then appointed every 4 years to 

review Social Security issues. That was the precursor of the Social 

Security Advisory Board. 

16 

I now serve as one of four academic members and roughly 30 

venture capitalists and senior business executives who advise the 

Stanford Institute of Economic Policy Research on its research 

agenda. And I was a trustee of the College Retirement Equity 

Fund, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Georgetown University, and a member of the Board of Directors of Abt Associates, 

a private social science research and consulting firm with current 

sales of a bit over $500 million a year. 

I mention these activities because, like the Social Security Advisory Board, those positions required the ability to interact with 

strong-minded people of diverse views, to express one’s views forthrightly, and yet to work together collegially. 

Once again, I want to thank you for considering my nomination. 

I look forward to responding, to the best of my ability, to any questions you may pose. 

The CHAIRMAN. Dr. Aaron, thank you very much. 

[The prepared statement of Dr. Aaron appears in the appendix.] 

The CHAIRMAN. Dr. Chen, welcome. 

STATEMENT OF LANHEE J. CHEN, Ph.D., NOMINATED TO BE A 

MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD, SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, BALTIMORE, MD 

Dr. CHEN. Thank you. Chairman Wyden, Ranking Member 

Hatch, and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. I am honored by the trust that 

President Obama has placed in me, and I am proud to be a nominee to the Social Security Advisory Board. I am grateful to Senator 

Portman for his kind introduction and to Senate Minority Leader 

McConnell for the support he has shown to me throughout this 

process. 

You have met my family already this morning. I am grateful for 

their constant encouragement, love, and support, which have made 

this day possible. With me today also is a good friend of mine, Sean 

Memon. 

The Board plays an important role in providing key policymakers, including the President and members of this committee, 

with plausible policy alternatives to ensure the solvency of Social 

Security and related programs, the promotion of economic security 

in retirement, and proper coordination between efforts to ensure 

health and economic security for America’s seniors and disabled. 

These are all highly laudable goals and ones I look forward to promoting, if favorably reported by this committee and confirmed by 

the United States Senate. 

I believe that I possess the necessary experience, expertise, and 

judgment to serve as a member of the Social Security Advisory 

Board. I am currently a research fellow at the Hoover Institution 

and hold teaching appointments in the public policy program and 

the law school at Stanford University. Over the course of my professional career, I have addressed specific proposals to ensure the 

solvency of the program, studied potential reforms to Social Security at some of the country’s leading policy research institutions, 

and taught at the university level about entitlement reform. 

I offer a unique perspective, relative to other members of the 

Board, by virtue of the fact that Social Security benefits are likely 

17 

at least 30 years away for me. Many in my generation and those 

younger than me are concerned about the future of the program. 

Reforming the program to ensure its solvency for my generation 

and beyond is a particular interest and concern of mine. 

Finally, I believe that the Board can play an important role in 

strengthening the Social Security, Disability Insurance, and Supplemental Security Insurance, or SSI, programs. But it can only 

play this role if members of the Board perform their duties with 

an eye toward consensus-building, bipartisanship, and with mutual 

respect for one another’s views. 

I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Board, the 

President, the Commissioner of Social Security, members of this 

committee, the U.S. Congress more generally, and interested stakeholders, should I be confirmed. 

Thank you again, Mr. Chairman, Senator Hatch, and members 

of the committee, for the privilege of appearing before you today. 

I look forward to earning your support and will be pleased to respond to your questions. 

The CHAIRMAN. Dr. Chen, thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Dr. Chen appears in the appendix.] 

The CHAIRMAN. Dr. Cohen? 

STATEMENT OF ALAN L. COHEN, Ph.D., NOMINATED TO BE A 

MEMBER OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD, SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, BALTIMORE, MD 

Dr. COHEN. Chairman Wyden, Ranking Member Hatch, Senator 

Warner, who is not with us at the moment, and the other Senators 

on the Finance Committee, it is a great honor to appear before you 

today as a nominee to be a member of the Social Security Advisory 

Board. 

I especially want to thank President Obama for nominating me 

for this position. I greatly appreciate this opportunity for public 

service that he has given me. And I also want to thank Senator 

Warner for introducing me today. 

The Social Security program provides for wage replacement for 

workers and their families when the principal earner in the family 

retires, becomes disabled, or dies. Without this program, many of 

these families would face very difficult financial situations. That is 

why this program is so important. 

The Social Security Advisory Board makes recommendations for 

the Social Security programs to the President, the Congress, the 

Commissioner of Social Security, and interested citizens. Given the 

importance of the Social Security program, the work of this Advisory Board is important as well. That is why serving on the Board 

would be a great honor for me. 

I believe that my educational and professional experiences make 

me ideally suited to serve on this Board. With regard to my education, I earned a B.A. in 1972 from Grinnell College in Grinnell, 

IA. I received a master’s degree in public policy studies in 1975 

from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University 

of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus. Finally, I received a Ph.D. in economics in 1979 from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, WI. 

With regard to my professional experience, I was the analyst for 

the Social Security program for the Democratic Staff of the Senate 

18 

Budget Committee from 1983 through 1991. And that position required me to be constantly studying issues related to the financing, 

development, and administration of the program. 

From 1993 to the year 2000 I held the position of Senior Advisor 

to the Secretary of the Treasury for Budget and Economics. The 

Secretary of the Treasury serves as managing trustee of the Social 

Security Trust Fund. In that role, the Secretary was a participant 

in all of the discussions within the administration regarding Social 

Security’s finances. I advised the Secretary as he prepared for all 

of these discussions. 

Finally, from the year 2001 to the year 2012, I served on the 

Democratic Staff of the Senate Finance Committee as the chief 

counselor to the chairman for Social Security. In the Senate, the 

Finance Committee has wide jurisdiction over the Social Security 

program. As a result, it plays a critical role in the financing, policy 

development, and administration of the program. In my position as 

chief counselor, I advised Chairman Baucus on all of these matters. 

My work as chief counselor has been especially important in preparing me for the work I would do if confirmed to be a member of 

the Social Security Advisory Board. 

Before I conclude, I want to especially thank a number of people 

who have been instrumental in the development of my life and my 

career. This includes my brother Barry Cohen, my partner Valerie 

Nelken, and my sister-in-law Robbie Cohen, who could not be here 

today because of job-related responsibilities. It includes all of my 

aunts and uncles, all of whom have already passed away. But of 

greatest importance, it includes my father, Dr. Abraham G. Cohen, 

and my mother, Ruth Cohen. My mother died in 1974 and my father passed away 2 years later. Unfortunately, they never had the 

joy and the pride of seeing many of the things I have accomplished 

in my career. But while they were alive, their guidance, their support, and their inspiration made me what I am today. I can never 

thank them enough for what they did for me. 

Again, I want to thank the committee for asking me to appear 

today. I would be honored to have your support for my nomination, 

and I would be pleased to answer any questions that you may have 

for me. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Dr. Cohen, and I am sure your parents would be kvelling for your wonderful accomplishments. 

[Laughter.] 

[The prepared statement of Dr. Cohen appears in the appendix.] 

Dr. COHEN. Thank you very much. 

The CHAIRMAN. Now, at this point in the Finance Committee, we 

have to have each nominee respond to four questions. And I think, 

in the interest of time, I am going to ask the question once and 

then go down the row and have each one of you respond. They are 

fairly straightforward. 

So the first question is, is there anything you are aware of in 

your background that might present a conflict of interest with the 

duties of the office to which you have been nominated? 

Ms. Vetter? 

Ms. VETTER. No, Mr. Chairman, I am not. 

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Selig? 

Mr. SELIG. No, Mr. Chairman. 

19 

Dr. AARON. No, sir. 

Dr. CHEN. No, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. COHEN. No, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

The second question is, for each of you, do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from 

fully and honorably discharging the responsibilities of the office to 

which you have been nominated? 

Ms. VETTER. No, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. SELIG. No, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. AARON. No, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. CHEN. No, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. COHEN. No, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

The third question is, do you agree without reservation to respond to any reasonable summons to appear and testify before any 

duly constituted committee of the Congress, if you are confirmed? 

Ms. VETTER. Yes, I agree. 

Mr. SELIG. Yes, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. AARON. Yes. 

Dr. CHEN. Yes, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. COHEN. Yes, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

The last question is, do you commit to provide a prompt response 

in writing to any questions addressed to you by any Senator of this 

committee? 

Ms. VETTER. I do, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. SELIG. Yes, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. AARON. Yes. 

Dr. CHEN. Yes, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. COHEN. Yes, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

So now we will recognize Senators for 5-minute rounds. I will 

begin with you, Mr. Selig, and ask simply, I think you heard Senator Hatch comment on several of your investments. I would be interested, and I think it would helpful for the record if you could, 

in effect, give your response to those earlier comments. 

Mr. SELIG. Certainly, Mr. Chairman. In 2007 I made those two 

private investments in Sun Capital Partners V and Conversus Capital. Sun Capital V is a private equity fund, and Conversus is a 

publicly traded portfolio of private equity funds. 

I have subsequently sold my investment in Conversus, and pursuant to my agreement with the Office of Government Ethics, I 

plan to sell my investment in Sun Capital Partners V. 

Prior to Sun Capital Partners V, all of the previous Sun Capital 

funds were domestically domiciled. For Sun Capital V, the GP 

moved the domicile to the Cayman Islands, which I was not aware 

of at the time. As I am not a general partner of the fund, I do not 

believe I received any tax advantage as a limited partner, and I 

paid all of my taxes in full for each year of my investment in the 

fund. 

The CHAIRMAN. I want to make sure we got that. You did not get, 

in your view, any tax benefit from either arrangement and, in your 

view, you paid all taxes related to the investments? 

20 

Mr. SELIG. That is correct, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. All right. Is there anything else you would like 

to add on that point? 

Mr. SELIG. I do not believe so, Mr. Chairman. 

The CHAIRMAN. All right. 

Dr. Chen, a quick question for you, if I might. On this matter of 

the writing of articles, do you see any problem with nominees to 

a Federal advisory board like the SSAB writing articles on a variety of issues, as long as they are not writing on issues the Board 

oversees? 

Dr. CHEN. Mr. Chairman, thank you for the question. I think it 

is crucially important that members of the Board not engage in 

writings that would prejudice discussions or deliberations with respect to issues pending before the Board. 

I would say, Mr. Chairman, I do think there are situations where 

a general discussion or exposition of a problem that may be related 

to an issue that the Board is considering may be an appropriate 

grounds for writing. However, none of that writing, as I said earlier, should discourage or inhibit any conversation that might take 

place between members of the Board. 

And I would adhere to that rule, and I would encourage my colleagues to do the same. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

Dr. Aaron and Dr. Cohen, do you largely agree with what Dr. 

Chen said? 

Dr. AARON. I think he stated it very well. 

Dr. COHEN. Yes. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

My last question really is for you, Ms. Vetter. As you know, trade 

is enormously important to my home State and to our country. One 

out of six jobs in Oregon depends on international trade. The trade 

jobs often pay better than do the non-trade jobs because they reflect a very high level of productivity. 

And of course, with respect to agriculture, what we want to do 

is, we want to grow things in America, we want to add value to 

them in America, and then we want to ship them somewhere. So 

your position is of exceptional importance. 

Now, many agriculture groups see huge market-opening potential 

in the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations. Nevertheless, several 

of these groups, including a number that I care a great deal about, 

Oregon wheat and dairy producers, are concerned that Japan’s lack 

of ambition could result in an anemic market access outcome with 

respect to those sectors. 

You have been closely involved in these negotiations, and, as the 

Chief Agricultural Negotiator at USTR, you would be tasked with 

delivering a deal that wins for all of agriculture. Now, I understand 

the sensitivity of what is going on, but can you give us at least 

some general assessment of what your strategy would be for obtaining an agreement that produces the most meaningful new market access for a cross-section of our agricultural interests, including 

sectors that obviously the Japanese consider sensitive? 

Ms. VETTER. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

21 

As you noted, these negotiations are in a sensitive stage, but I 

have been actively involved in them. And our negotiations with 

Japan, I think, are picking up the pace. 

We have made good progress with them, and Japan has committed that it will not exclude any product from the negotiations. 

Our task right now is to bring home the most meaningful and ambitious market access possible across the entire spectrum of U.S. 

agriculture products, and that includes the five sensitive product 

areas that Japan has identified. 

We are working very closely right now with Japan, with our 

stakeholders, and with members of Congress and your staff to try 

to identify what the best landing zone can be on those issues and 

how we can get the most ambitious market opening possible with 

that critical partner. 

The CHAIRMAN. Well, I appreciate that, and I have made it a special priority to build a bipartisan coalition for the trade policies of 

the future. The stakes are so high, and it is very clear that there 

are opportunities, because this is going to be a big education job. 

People talk about TPA. There are just a handful of Democrats, 

for example, who are still in the Congress who have had some experience with that and voted for it and the like. So we are going 

to work very closely with you, and we are going to work with you 

in a bipartisan way. 

Senator Hatch? 

Senator HATCH. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Ms. Vetter, the protection of intellectual property rights benefits 

all sectors of the U.S. economy, including agriculture. Now, American agriculture producers lead the world in innovation, and consumers around the globe view American brand names as a badge 

of quality. 

How do you view the relationship between the protection of intellectual property rights and agriculture? And, if confirmed, what 

will you do to improve the protection of intellectual property rights 

for American agricultural products? 

Ms. VETTER. Mr. Hatch, thank you for your question and thank 

you for your leadership on this issue. 

I know that you have been a strong advocate for intellectual 

property protection for many years, and it is critical to, not only increasing agricultural exports, but frankly to meeting the food security needs of a world where we will need to feed 9 billion people 

by 2050. 

I think there are three specific areas that come to mind for me 

where we need to work together on protecting intellectual property 

rights in agriculture. And one is, of course, enforcing strong trademarks for U.S. brands that now are seen as a mark of high quality 

and of food safety, which is important to many consumers around 

the world. So we have to make sure that those are not infringed 

upon. 

Senator HATCH. All right. Go ahead. 

Ms. VETTER. The second area is in geographic indications. We 

and the European Union have a difference of views about the scope 

and the level of coverage that should be provided to GIs, and we 

need to work together to ensure that the U.S. dairy manufacturers, 

22 

meat makers, for example, have the opportunity to sell products 

under generic names. 

And third, of course, is the protection of patents for the use of 

biotechnology and nanotechnology. These new technologies are important now and are widely used by U.S. producers who are looking 

for protection for those products overseas, but they will also be a 

critical tool in the next generation of agricultural products that 

help us deal with the need to produce more food with fewer natural 

resources. 

So I look forward to working with you on those protections. 

Senator HATCH. Well, thank you. 

Dr. Chen, one proposal to help the financial conditions of the 

Trust Funds associated with the Social Security system, specifically 

the Disability Insurance Trust Fund and the separate Old-Age and 

Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, is to increase or eliminate what 

is called the tax max. Now, as you know, the tax max represents 

maximum earnings subject to Social Security payroll taxes, and is 

currently at $117,000, I believe. 

Now, justifications for this that I have heard include, one, we did 

it before; two, high earners, sometimes called the rich, have to pay 

their fair share; and three, there have been other times when we 

taxed a greater share of taxable earnings than we do today. However, the proponents of increasing taxes seem never to want to talk 

about the potential downsides, including adverse labor market effects, just to mention one. And I believe that is a mistake, to not 

consider the downsides. 

Dr. Chen, if earnings above the current tax max were to be subjected to payroll taxes, do you believe that there could be any adverse effects to consider; is there a downside to it? 

Dr. CHEN. Thank you for the question, Senator Hatch. 

Increasing the share of taxable earnings subject to payroll taxes 

is certainly a viable option to consider, to help improve the longterm financial condition of the trust funds. As the trustees have 

made clear in their annual report, Congress can choose to shore up 

the financial condition of the trust funds through either reducing 

benefits, increasing taxes, or some combination of the two. 

Of course, if benefits are altered, no one entertains the notion of 

across-the-board benefit cuts. For example, some have suggested 

we ought to slow the growth of benefits for upper-income earners 

while strengthening or enhancing benefit growth for those at the 

bottom end of the wage scale. 

To your question, Senator, I am concerned about the labor market impacts, potentially, of some proposals, such as the one you 

have discussed. I do believe that there is a potential impact with 

respect to the demand on labor, as well as, frankly, with respect 

to the tax reward for work. And so for those reasons, Senator, I believe we ought to look at a proposal like that one critically, as we 

should with all proposals, quite frankly. But I do believe it is proper to consider all solutions. 

Clearly, we are at a stage where the program faces significant 

challenges, and I would certainly encourage the Board to consider 

all possible solutions. 

Senator HATCH. Well, thank you so much. 

Could I ask one more? 

23 

The CHAIRMAN. Of course, Senator Hatch. 

Senator HATCH. Mr. Selig, the International Trade Administration needs to be a powerful advocate for U.S. businesses and workers. In a hearing with Ambassador Froman last week, I expressed 

my concern that the agencies responsible for opening world markets for U.S. workers and job creators are losing the interagency 

battles necessary to do so. I am concerned that USTR has not been 

receiving the support it needs to prevail in the interagency process. 

Now, I am particularly bothered by the apparent lack of advocacy 

on behalf of strong intellectual property rights. I do not mean to 

harp just on that, but it is important to our country. Now, will you 

commit to me today that you and the ITA will be a strong voice 

for U.S. intellectual property rights in the interagency process? 

Mr. SELIG. Thank you, Senator. 

I have met with Ambassador Froman already and talked to him 

about these very issues. Intellectual property rights span all industries and affect virtually every company in our economy. I commit 

to you to be vigilant and do everything I can to protect the intellectual property rights of U.S. companies, big and small alike. 

Senator HATCH. Thank you. 

My time is up. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Hatch. 

Senator Isakson? 

Senator ISAKSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Ms. Vetter, let me ask you a couple questions about agriculture. 

I represent the State of Georgia. One in four crop acres in my State 

is planted for export purposes. 

I am a big fan of the negotiations that are going on on both the 

Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, but I am very worried that, in the end, we are 

going to continue to have regulatory barriers to U.S. agricultural 

products going into both Europe and the Pacific. In particular, 

poultry is the largest product in my State. Delaware is a huge poultry State. Europe uses non-tariff barriers like refusing to take 

chickens that are washed in chlorinated water, which is just a misdirection play to keep Georgia chickens out. 

What are you doing and what is Ambassador Froman doing to 

help bring down these non-tariff barriers to U.S. products? 

Ms. VETTER. Thank you very much for your question. 

You are absolutely right that, as tariff barriers have gone down 

in agriculture, those sanitary and phytosanitary barriers have, in 

fact, gone up. And we are working very hard, and, if confirmed, I 

will continue to work with you and others to make sure that we 

have a strong SPS agenda in these trade agreements, as well as 

a tariff agenda. 

We are looking at strengthened SPS provisions in the TPP, 

stronger than what we have included in past agreements, and we 

have been very clear at the outset of the TTIP negotiations with 

Europe that we would be seeking a strong SPS chapter and a real 

negotiation on the regulatory system. 

I am pleased to say that the European Food Safety Authority has 

in fact taken the first steps by giving a positive assessment that 

PAA, peroxyacetic acid, is actually a safe product to be used as a 

pathogen reduction treatment for poultry. And we will continue to 

24 

watch and encourage that PAA goes through the European food 

safety system and is approved so that we can export those poultry 

products. 

Senator ISAKSON. Well, that would be a major change, in and of 

itself. Because pathogen reduction has been one of the requirements they have used to not allow those chickens to come into Europe. Is that not right? 

Ms. VETTER. That is true. That is right. So we will, again, be 

watching that issue very closely and working with our partners in 

Europe in hopes that that can be an approved treatment. 

Senator ISAKSON. Mr. Selig, I am a big fan of your future boss, 

Ms. Pritzker. She is a terrific Commerce Secretary. 

I am also a big fan of expanding trade, realizing that for American companies, many of them, the ability to expand market share 

depends on opening up markets overseas. So I am a big promoter 

of trying to get these trade negotiations completed so we have more 

opportunity for our companies. 

I think it is important, though, that we get Trade Promotion Authority passed in Congress. And we have one barrier that I know 

of, and that is that the Majority Leader, unlike the President, who 

has asked for it in his State of the Union address, the Majority 

Leader has tended to push it aside, and we have not had it on the 

agenda. 

I do not think Ms. Vetter can do her job, or that Mr. Froman can 

do his job, without TPA. Do you have any comment on that? 

Mr. SELIG. Thank you for your question, Senator. I too am a big 

fan of the Secretary’s. 

Both the President and the Secretary are on record supporting 

Congress passing the TPA. I do believe that TPA is a critical tool 

to bring home all trade agreements, TPP and others, and that the 

U.S. would be at a significant disadvantage without TPA. So I look 

forward to doing everything I can to be helpful to Congress moving 

this legislation forward. 

Senator ISAKSON. Thank you very much. 

Dr. Aaron, when I looked at my schedule last night, I was so excited that one of my constituents was going to be here today, in 

Hank Aaron. [Laughter.] But I found out when I walked in the 

room that I did not have the Hall of Famer. But I appreciate your 

service to Social Security. 

Let me ask you and all three of the appointees to the Advisory 

Board, or potential appointees, a question. I am one of those who 

tries to refrain from using ‘‘entitlement reform’’ when it comes to 

Medicare and Social Security, because those are contracts we have 

with the American people that they have paid good money for. 

But we are not going to be able to fulfill the promises of Social 

Security and Medicare if we do not reform both eligibility, as well 

as how the formula is done, as well as look at the revenue sources, 

like some of the things that Dr. Chen talked about. I hope the Advisory Board will be a vocal advocate of different alternatives that 

Congress has to save Social Security for the people who have paid 

for it. 

A lot of times when we talk about entitlement reform, people are 

afraid we are going to take something away from them. Well, the 

worst takeaway of all would be for us to allow our debt to grow and 

25 

grow and grow, and our obligations to pass our ability to pay them, 

and then there would be nothing left at all for Social Security or 

Medicare. 

So you have a huge responsibility, and I would like, in the little 

time—well, I have only 36 seconds. I hope, as members of the 

Board, you will take the opportunity to be outspoken on different 

paths that we can take to save programs that the American people 

have paid for and that we promised them. 

The CHAIRMAN. And I want my colleague to have the time to be 

able to get a response. He has been very thoughtful, worked with 

me on chronic disease in terms of Medicare. So, Senator Isakson, 

you have additional time, and then we will recognize Senator 

Thune. 

Senator ISAKSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. AARON. My response is that I think you have stated the problem and the challenge admirably. I also thought that Dr. Chen’s 

description of the options before us was very well-crafted. 

There are projected long-term deficits in Social Security, and 

near-term deficits in the Medicare Hospital Insurance Fund. Whatever we do to deal with those shortfalls is going to entail some 

tough choices, either raising revenues in some fashion or reducing 

the rate of growth of benefits in some fashion. 

Those are not options I think that rank high on the preferences 

of any of us, standing by themselves. But I think, working together, 

we can fashion compromises that should command widespread support in Congress and sustain these vitally important programs in 

the years ahead. 

Senator ISAKSON. Thank you. 

Dr. Chen? 

Dr. CHEN. Senator Isakson, first of all, thank you for your leadership on these crucial issues. I just agree with my colleague; I think 

it is crucially important that we work together to ensure that the 

promises that we have made to our seniors and those who are disabled are promises that this government continues to be able to 

keep. 

And so, those are things that are important, and they would be 

a priority of mine, certainly, on the Board as well. 

Senator ISAKSON. Good. 

Dr. Cohen? 

Dr. COHEN. Social Security does have a modest long-run financing problem. We can pay full benefits for the next 20 years and still 

be able to pay three-quarters of benefits thereafter, but that is not 

good enough. And so the Board, along with everybody else who 

worries about the Social Security program, will be looking at ways 

to fix that long-term financial challenge. 

And I might add, Senator, that the Board has pioneered the notion of getting all the options out on the table, and that they have 

published from time to time a list of all of the options for reducing 

the long-run financing problem of Social Security and how much 

each option would contribute to reducing that amount. 

So I expect to work very much with the Board, on the Board, on 

these issues. The Board has taken a strong interest in this in the 

past. 

Senator ISAKSON. I just wanted to make a point, Mr. Chairman. 

26 

The CHAIRMAN. Please do. 

Senator ISAKSON. I was born December 28, 1944. In 1983, President Reagan and Tip O’Neill reformed eligibility for Social Security 

by saying anybody born after 1943 could not get it at age 65; they 

had to wait till age 66. 

I was born in the year after 1943. I did not think I was going 

to live to 66 to begin with. And my father had always told me the 

government was going to screw it up, and I needed to save for myself. And when I got to age 65, I did not even realize I had had 

a year taken away from me 29 years ago. 

My point is this: The quicker we deal with the fix, because of the 

time value of money, the easier the fix is going to be, both on the 

benefits side and the revenue side. And we still have time to do 

that, but we are going to need to elevate the discussion about that 

subject. 

And I appreciate the extra time. Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Isakson. 

I am going to talk at the end a little bit about how we might elevate the discussion, because I think Senator Isakson is making an 

extremely important point. And on these issues, he has clearly 

been part of the effort to bring Democrats and Republicans together, and that is the key. 

Senator Thune? 

Senator THUNE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I would also like 

to associate myself with the remarks of my colleague from Georgia, 

and welcome the people who are going to be advising on these important issues, as there is no more important domestic policy issue, 

in my view, than dealing with the debt and deficit challenge that 

we are facing. And it is a crisis today; it is going to become even 

a bigger crisis if we do not deal with it. 

I want to speak a little bit to trade, so I would like to direct this 

question to Ms. Vetter. But one of the reasons that we need TPA 

is in order to reach a successful conclusion of the Trans-Pacific 

Partnership, or TPP. 

And as you know, a major focus of our agricultural producers is 

further opening the Japanese market to our products. Unfortunately, the Japanese government continues to insist on limiting access for certain commodities, such as wheat and rice, dairy, beef, 

pork, and sugar. And, while it may not prove feasible to completely 

eliminate every single tariff on every agricultural product, I think 

it is important that we reaffirm that the goal of America’s free 

trade agreements is to come up with across-the-board tariff elimination. And I would argue that marginal improvements in market 

access simply are not good enough. 

So is your view that the goal of TPP should be tariff elimination 

across the board, and, if confirmed, is this a position that you will 

advocate for as America’s Chief Agricultural Negotiator? 

Ms. VETTER. Thank you very much for your question. 

Indeed, in our negotiations on market access with all of our TPP 

partners—and there are a few where we do not yet have market 

access or free trade agreements—we are seeking as our goal tariff 

elimination on all goods, including those in agriculture. And our 

goal at the moment is to go line by line with those countries 

27 

through those products and achieve the best and fullest market access agreement possible that we can get on all of those products. 

I would note, as I noted earlier on a question that Senator 

Wyden asked, that indeed our negotiations with Japan are difficult, 

but Japan has agreed that there will not be any exclusions of products and that each product, including those sensitive ones, will be 

addressed in this agreement. 

So our goal right now is working with you and with our stakeholders to get that best deal possible for all of U.S. agriculture. 

Senator THUNE. Well, I guess I would point out too that I think 

it is important to keep in mind that the amount of new market access that we get from Japan is going to impact the market access 

we receive from other TPP countries. And a good example of this 

dynamic is dairy in Canada. We have, under NAFTA, dairy producers who have benefitted enormously in the American Southwest 

because of increased exports to Mexico, given the proximity to that 

country. Yet dairy producers in States with close proximity to Canada, such as South Dakota, continue to be limited in our dairy exports by virtue of their supply management system. 

So, if confirmed, how will you ensure that Canada makes the reforms necessary to eliminate unjustified barriers to U.S. agricultural products? And how did the past few weeks’ agricultural market access discussions with Japan impact our ability to secure robust and commercially meaningful access to the Canadian dairy 

market? 

Ms. VETTER. Well, Senator, I could not agree with you more that 

the time is now for Canada to come forward with strong marketopening offers on dairy and poultry and egg products. We were 

very clear with Canada when they joined the TPP negotiations that 

we would be pushing hard for additional access to that market in 

those areas where we did not gain access under NAFTA. 

And, if confirmed as Chief Agricultural Negotiator, that will be 

one of my top negotiating priorities, making sure we can take advantage of that proximity to that critical market for us. 

Senator THUNE. All right. 

Well, coming back to Asia, we recently raised with Ambassador 

Froman the growing problem with China and them not approving 

in a timely manner a lot of the new biotech traits for corn and soybeans. And I know from your position at USDA that you are familiar with that situation and the trade disruptions that it is causing. 

And I guess, again, I would ask, if you are confirmed, will you 

urge your counterparts in China to move expeditiously on the approval of agricultural biotech products that have already been approved in the United States for entry into the Chinese market? 

And similarly, will you work with the EU as part of the TTIP 

agreement to ensure that food safety systems are based on sound 

science and not other considerations? That is an issue we have, as 

you know, with the Europeans as well. 

Ms. VETTER. Absolutely. Those, in fact, are two top priorities that 

I have been working on in my position at USDA. And, if confirmed, 

I would be happy to continue to work with you to make sure we 

can advance our trade in biotech and other products, and to encourage science-based decision-making. 

Senator THUNE. All right. Good. Thank you. 

28 

Mr. Chairman, that is all I have. My time is up. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Thune. 

Let me say to our nominees, we have four votes coming up on 

the floor. 

So I am going to say to you, Mr. Selig, I want to submit a question in writing with respect to trade enforcement, because certainly 

a big part of the country, when they hear about additional trade 

agreements—and I have voted for essentially every major marketopening agreement in my time in public service—people want to 

know, what are you going to do to enforce the laws on the books? 

So we will need that response quickly in writing from you, with respect to trade enforcement. 

And, apropos of Senator Isakson’s very good point about raising 

the dialogue, which is a viewpoint that I share, I would like to say 

to the three nominees for the Social Security positions, I would especially like you to look at new ways to bring younger people into 

this discussion. Because I can tell you, I go to high schools. Now 

we call the program Listening to Oregon’s Future. And we spend 

the first 40 minutes or so talking about student loans and parks 

and recreation areas that young people care about. 

And so I often say, I assume that you all are 16, 17, 18? And 

they say, that is right, Senator. I say, well, I bet when you get up 

in the morning and you are talking to your friends on your cell or 

you are tweeting or communicating with Facebook or something, I 

bet you talk about Medicare. [Laughter.] And they all look at me 

like I just lost it. And I say, and if you go on a date, you talk about 

Social Security. I am sure you do. [Laughter.] 

And then I say, of course I am kidding. But I am not kidding 

completely, because, apropos of Senator Isakson’s point, we need to 

start this intergenerational dialogue in order to build bipartisan solutions that really span the generations. So, Senator Isakson talked 

about raising the dialogue. I would particularly like you to bring 

more younger people into that discussion. 

So, unless there is any other business or further questions for 

our nominees, we will just wrap up today. Members should know 

that we will keep the record open until Monday close of business. 

We will have a written question for you, Mr. Selig. Other members 

may have questions in writing. 

My hope is that we can get all of you confirmed expeditiously. 

I will do everything I possibly can to do that. 

And with that, the Finance Committee is adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 11:24 a.m., the hearing was concluded.] 

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