Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk was confirmed by the Senate today to be the 16th United States Trade Representative.  There was no drama — his supporters won the vote by the lopsided margin of 92 to five.  As Chamber President Tom Donohue said when his nomination was announced in December:

At a time when trade has been a rare bright spot for the U.S. economy, we welcome President-elect Obama's emphasis on the need to ‘expand our efforts to promote American enterprise around the world.' … During his time in Washington, Austin, and Dallas, Ron Kirk demonstrated a keen understanding of the benefits of trade as an engine for growth and jobs. Rebuilding the bipartisan consensus on trade will be job one as U.S. Trade Representative, but in the end, his mission will be to open overseas markets to American goods and services.

As Mayor of Dallas, Kirk won accolades from Texans for his common sense, pro-business positions, developing a reputation as a pragmatist with a real-world appreciation of trade's benefits.  With Kirk in place, the new administration's trade policy will be off to a strong start, as we've already seen in the President's 2009 Trade Policy Agenda.

Kirk will face many challenges.  Resisting protectionism will be critical, as we've seen in the "Buy American" debate and the long-running dispute over cross-border trucking with Mexico.  But if Ron Kirk has anything to say about it, trade will be part of the cure for what ails the American economy today.