International Economic Affairs Department, 1960-1995
Part of collection: National Association of Manufacturers records (1411)
Dates
- Creation: 1960-1995
Historical Note
International trade emerged as an important component of NAM’s work beginning in the decades after the Second World War, leading to the formation of the International Economic Affairs Department. Issues related to foreign investment, tariffs, and international patent law only became more critical with an increasingly global economy in the last decades of the century. In the 1980s and 1990s, the International Economic Affairs Department was involved in several major developments in international trade, namely the negotiations of the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which resulted in the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995, and the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1993.
Technology became an increasingly important economic concern during the same period. In 1988, NAM formed the Council on High Technology (COHT), initially as part of the Resources and Technology Department though it was moved to the International Economic Affairs Department the following year. In 1993, COHT was re-designated the Technology Policy Committee. In addition to handling issues related to manufacturing technology and federal R&D policies, a significant portion of its activities concerned intellectual property and international patent law.
Following a reorganization of NAM’s Policy and Communications Division in 1994, the International Economic Affairs Department changed its name to the Trade and Technology Department.
Scope and Contents
The International Economic Affairs Department was responsible for NAM activities related to international trade, international investment and finance, and later technology. The materials are arranged into four subseries: Staff; Committees, subcommittees, and task forces; Conferences and meetings; and Subject files. This series should be used in conjunction with the Trade and Technology Department, as the department changed names in 1994.
The Staff subcommittee contains the papers of several NAM staff members within the department including Kitty Brims (1963-), associate director of International Trade; Stephen Cooney (1946-), director of International Investment and Finance; Jerry Jasinowski (1939-), NAM president; Howard Lewis (1948-), vice president of the department; Marino Marcich (1964-), Cooney’s successor as director of International Investment Finance; and Robert “Judge” Morris (1944-), director of International Trade. Cooney’s files contain numerous records related to the European Commission (EC) and the formation of the European Union, as well as material concerning South African apartheid. The Jasinowski files, it is important to note, are not his personal files but rather materials related to international economic affairs issues produced under Jasinowski’s signature. The files include numerous letters to members of Congress and several to President Bill Clinton, many concerning NAM’s campaign in support of NAFTA in 1993. Morris was responsible for organizing the long-running Trade Forum discussion series and his files contain extensive correspondence related to its organization. In each person’s case, the bulk of the records are made up of correspondence, memoranda, and mailings covering the day-to-day activities of the department.
The Committees, subcommittees, and task forces subseries includes mailings, meeting material, member lists, minutes, and agendas from the various committees and subcommittees that fell under the purview of the department. The material is arranged by committee or subcommittee, and then chronologically. One of the committees is the Technology Policy Committee (formerly the Council on High Technology, which is also included). Within these files are those from William Morin (1954-), who organized the Council and led its efforts, as well as meeting records of the two main groups within the committee: the Intellectual Property Task Force and the Technology Policy Task Force.
The Conferences and meetings subseries contains materials related to events held by NAM or attended by departmental staff. It includes the China Task Force, the America Issues Working Group, and meeting materials produced by several shorter-lived groups, dedicated to issues like encryption, bribery and corruption, and international standards. This subseries also contains materials related to the NAM Trade Forum meetings — an informal weekly meeting that brought government officials and trade experts together with NAM members to discuss a variety of issues related to international trade.
The Subject files subseries contains an assortment of records produced and collected by staff. These include internal departmental paperwork, newspaper clippings, Congressional testimony, NAM publications, and relevant policy documents.
Extent
From the Collection: 1100 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Additional Description
Access Restrictions
Records subject to 25-year time seal. Litigators may not view the collection without approval.
Related Names
Creator
- From the Collection: National Association of Manufacturers (U.S.) (Organization)
Repository Details
Repository Details
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
