Bill Hagerty

Guest Columnist

Bill Hagerty served as the 30th Ambassador of the United States to Japan (2017-2019).

President Trump tweeted that Hagerty will be running for U.S. Senate, but he has not confirmed that.

After leading Trump’s Tennessee Victory Team and serving as a senior leader on President Trump’s transition team, the president asked me to represent him as the United States Ambassador to Japan.

It is a tremendous privilege to serve our nation as the president’s representative to another nation.

When it is a country that is America’s strongest ally and a top economic partner, the honor takes on a new dimension of responsibility.

The president was clear with me at the outset about the priority he places on building and maintaining a strong relationship with Japan. He underscored that this strategic relationship is critical to the United States’ economy, military, and our national security.

Japan's relationship to Tennessee and the U.S. is critically important

After the United States, Japan is the second-largest free economy in the world (Communist China is a state-controlled economy), and we have deeply intertwined relationships.

Japan is a huge market for our farmers, who export beef, pork, corn, and wheat, for our producers who export the finest Tennessee whiskey, and for our manufacturers, who export everything from medical equipment to auto parts.

And Tennesseans know well that Japanese companies are our biggest investors, creating highly-paid manufacturing jobs throughout our state and nation. I enjoyed working directly with the leaders of companies like Bridgestone, Denso, Mitsubishi Motors and Nissan.

We are working closely with the Japanese to ensure they step up their support for our farmers right now by increasing imports of our agriculture products.

Japan benefits immensely when America stands up to China and pushes back against their harmful trade practices. Japan is suffering — just like we are — from intellectual property theft and unfair competition with China’s state-owned enterprises.

Japanese leaders often have told me they appreciate the strong position President Trump has taken. China has gone unchecked on their failed promises for too long, and we finally have a president in Donald Trump who is pushing back against this behavior.

In return, China has retaliated against our farmers in an effort to weaken the president at home. We are fortunate to have a patriotic base of farmers, who appreciate what is at stake for Americans as they weather the onslaught from China.

The president is sending relief to American farmers in the form of financial aid. But our farmers don’t want subsidies — they want a level playing field and fair treatment. I am confident that Japan will stand with us — and play a critical role in the president’s efforts to grow the market for American farmers.

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It was an honor to work with U.S. troops

The United States has more members of our military based in Japan than any other country outside the United States.

One of my favorite aspects of representing the president in Japan was the time I spent with our troops stationed there: our Marines in Okinawa, our Army base at Camp Zama, the Seventh Fleet at Yokosuka Naval Base, our Air Force based at Yokota, and many others.

The brave men and women serving at these bases — far away from their homes and their families — make tremendous sacrifices to keep our country, and the world, safe. They represent the very best of what America has to offer.

It was the highest honor of my job as ambassador to represent and work with our troops.

The age of 'strategic patience' is over

What’s happening in North Korea and to the south and west of Japan, where China has built and militarized artificial islands, underscores the high strategic threat that is present in the region. The United States is Japan’s most important ally in addressing these threats.

I’m proud that under President Trump’s leadership, America is no longer “leading from behind” nor deploying “strategic patience” as North Korea and China ramp up their military posture.

That’s no way to lead when the world looks to us as a beacon of freedom and hope. Our Japanese allies are grateful — as are the American people — to have a president who firmly believes in peace through strength.

I saw firsthand how President Trump is putting America first, and let me tell you, it is working. Under the president’s leadership, we’ve increased our military budget, we’ve enhanced our posture in the region and we’ve sent a clear message. Today our enemies fear us, and our allies respect us again.

My family and I are thankful for the two years we were honored to be stationed in Japan representing President Trump and our nation abroad. At the same time, we could not be happier to be back home in Tennessee.

We missed our church, our friends, our scout troops, and the never-ending Tennessee sky. We have new horizons ahead of us.

Bill Hagerty served as the 30th ambassador of the United States to Japan (2017-2019).