Singh is currently the Chief Counsel, Sen. Dan Sullivan
President Trump might soon nominate Indian American Manisha Singh to a key post in the State Department, putting her in a pivotal position of US economic diplomacy.
If the Senate approves President Trump’s nomination of Singh to the post of Assistant Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, it would fill an important position left vacant after Charles Rivkin resigned following the swearing in of the new administration.
Singh, who is currently the Chief Counsel, Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK), was the former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Trade Policy and Programs in the Bureau of Economic, Energy and Business Affairs.
During her tenure as the Deputy Secretary, she was responsible for developing and promoting trade policy within the foreign policy context.
She also has experience serving as a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs, during which she dealt with various issues related to the US international organization missions inNew York, Geneva, Paris, Vienna, and Rome.
Before joining the administration, she served as Deputy Chief Counsel to the Republican staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (2003-2007), working for Chairman/Ranking Member Senator Richard Lugar.
There, she was responsible for international trade, economic and development matters, including treaties, free trade agreements, OPIC and WTO issues.
Her duties included confirmations of US ambassadors and administration officials as well as oversight of US government participation in entities such as the OECD and APEC.
Her prior Capitol Hill experience includes serving as counsel to the Republican staff of the US House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce, where she managed the committee’s international commerce jurisdiction.
Before working for the Congress, she was a practicing attorney at the law firms of Squire Sanders & Dempsey L.L.P. in the Corporate and Capital Markets group and Reed Smith LLP, where she represented privately held and publicly listed clients in domestic and cross border transactions.
Singh also spent time at Stewart and Smith, Inc., where she advised financial investment firms regarding domestic and international legal issues impacting the market price of publicly held securities.
She completed a Master of Laws (LLM) in International Legal Studies, with concentration in international trade, at the American University Washington College of Law. While completing this degree, she worked in the Office of General Counsel at the United States International Trade Commission.
After law school, she served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Edward F. Threadgill, Jr., then Chief Judge of the State of Florida Second District Court of Appeal.
Her educational background includes earning a Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Florida College of Law at the age of 22 and completing a Certificate at the University of Leiden in The Netherlands. She earned a Bachelor of Arts (BA) with honors at the University of Miami at the age of 19.
She speaks fluent Hindi and conversational Spanish. She is admitted to practice law in Florida, the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania. She is a member of the South Asian Bar Association and a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.