Exim Gets Jump Start with Acting Appointments

Seeking to prevent a repeat of the operational gridlock that hampered the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) during President Trump’s first term, the White House has appointed two veteran career officials to the agency’s Board of Directors. The move guarantees a quorum, enabling EXIM to function fully without immediate pressure on the administration to nominate additional Democratic board members.

President Trump designated James C. Cruse and James G. Burrows—both longtime EXIM officials—to key leadership roles in an acting capacity until permanent appointments are made.

Cruse, a senior EXIM official since 1970, will serve as Acting EXIM President and Chairman of the Board of Directors. Over his decades-long tenure, he has played a pivotal role in shaping the bank’s policy framework, particularly since the establishment of the policy unit in 1975 under then-Chairman William Casey.

Burrows, who joined EXIM in 2012, will assume the role of Acting First Vice President and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors. Having led EXIM’s Office of Small Business from 2013 to 2021, he previously served as Acting Chair and President following his appointment by President Biden in 2021 until the Senate confirmed Chair Reta Jo Lewis in 2022.

By appointing Cruse and Burrows, President Trump ensures that EXIM remains operational and aligned with his administration’s America First trade and economic policies. They will join current board member Spencer Bachus III, a former congressman serving his second Senate-confirmed term through January 2027.

The administration also announced two new ex officio board members: U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, both confirmed by the Senate in February 2025. 

On February 16, 2025, President Trump revealed on Truth Social his intent to nominate  as Chairman of EXIM, John Jovanovic, an energy trader, tree surgeon and past director of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation’s office in Belgrade.

The White House’s strategic appointments allow EXIM to function without disruption while reducing immediate pressure to nominate additional Democratic board members, a requirement for maintaining the bank’s bipartisan governance structure.

During President Trump’s first administration, the EXIM Board of Directors lacked a quorum from July 20, 2015, until May 8, nearly four years, during which EXIM was unable to approve transactions exceeding $10 million due to the absence of the required three-member quorum. The quorum was restored on May 8, 2019, when the U.S. Senate confirmed three of President Trump’s nominees to the board, Mr. Bachus, Judith Pryor and Kimberly Reed.

The positions of President and First Vice President, who serve as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors respectively, are appointed by the President of the United States and require Senate confirmation. Additionally, three other members of the Board are appointed in the same manner