Senior Adviser
Alliance for American Manufacturing

Mr. Wessel is president of The Wessel Group Inc., a public affairs consulting firm offering expertise in government, politics and international affairs. He has served as a member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission since its creation in April 2001. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a staff adviser to the Labor Advisory Committee to the U.S. Trade Representative, and served on the U.S. Trade Deficit Review Commission from 1999 to 2000. For more than 20 years, Mr. Wessel worked on the staff of House Democratic Leader Richard A. Gephardt. In addition to serving as general counsel, he also served as Mr. Gephardt’s principal Ways and Means aide, participating in the enactment of every major trade policy initiative from 1978 to 1998. Additionally, he served as the executive director of the House Trade and Competitiveness Task Force and also co-authored with Mr. Gephardt the book, "An Even Better Place: America in the 21st Century" (Public Affairs, 1999). Mr. Wessel holds a B.A. and J.D. from George Washington University.