Former Deputy Director, National Economic Council; Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economic Affairs
Clete Willems was the Deputy Director of the White House National Economic Council and Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economic Affairs from 2018-19. He was the lead US negotiator at multilateral summits, serving as the President’s Sherpa at the G-7 and G-20 Summits and the lead negotiator at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum in 2018. He was also deeply involved with trade negotiations with China, the EU, Japan, Korea, Canada, and Mexico. Willems was instrumental in the achievement of key legislative victories, including the passage of development finance reform legislation and CFIUS reform legislation.