Senate Confirms Purdue as US Envoy to China

WASHINGTON—The Senate majority has approved former Georgia Sen. David Perdue as U.S. ambassador to China amid deepening bilateral trade tensions. The final 67–29 tally on April 29 confirmed the Trump nominee, a former Fortune 500 CEO and China critic who had lived in Hong Kong during his 40-year business career. Just before the vote, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho) rallied support for Perdue. “This is certainly one of the most important nominations and appointments that will come across this floor,” he said in a speech, commending President Donald Trump for his pick. Risch said Perdue has “heavy work cut out” for him in executing Trump’s China policy vision, adding that the country’s ruling regime has done “everything it can to infiltrate the United States.”...