AMTAC Executive Director Auggie Tantillo is responsible for strategic policy development and directing all of the organization's tactical lobbying and public relations activities and has coordinated AMTAC's Washington activities since the organization was founded on April 1, 2002.Under Auggie's leadership, AMTAC has spearheaded efforts to make changes in U.S. trade policy that would save U.S. manufacturing jobs and slow the fast-growing U.S. trade deficit. For example, AMTAC played a key role in persuading Congress to strengthen rules requiring the U.S. Defense Department to buy American-made products. AMTAC also led the charge to limit the growth of U.S. imports of textiles and clothing from China, culminating in the Bush Administration's negotiation of a comprehensive bilateral textile agreement in November 2005 covering more than $5 billion in U.S. imports from China in thirty-four (34) different product categories. Prior to joining AMTAC, Auggie had nine years of public service in Washington, D.C. He served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Textiles, Apparel and Consumer Goods for President George H.W. Bush from 1989 to 1992, developing domestic policy and participating in international trade negotiations with dozens of countries. In addition, Auggie worked as Staff Director/Administrative Assistant to U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina from 1988 to 1989, acting primary advisor on key legislative, economic, and political issues as well as overseeing a staff of forty. He also served Senator Thurmond from 1981 to 1985 as a Legislative Assistant, handling trade, commerce, and agriculture policy. Auggie's private sector government relations experience includes establishing the lobbying and consulting firm SRG & Associates in 1993 and working as Director of Federal Government Relations of the apparel company Russell Corporation of Alexander City, Alabama from 1985 to 1988. A native of North Augusta, South Carolina, Auggie earned a B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics from Clemson University in 1981. Dan LaPre is AMTAC's Director of Congressional Relations. As AMTAC's "eyes and ears" on Capitol Hill, Dan serves as chief liaison to the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate on legislative affairs and meets with Members of Congress and their staffs on a regular basis on educate them on AMTAC's legislative agenda. Dan's lobbying efforts helped secure congressional support for numerous AMTAC priorities, including strengthening laws that force the U.S. government to buy U.S.-made goods and limiting textile and apparel imports from China. Before joining AMTAC in 2003, Dan served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director for U.S. Representative Charlie Norwood of Georgia for more than eight years. While working for Congressman Norwood, Dan oversaw the staff of the Workforce Subcommittee of the House Education and Workforce Committee and specialized in manufacturing and international trade issues, working closely with textile, wood product and mining interests from northeastern Georgia. Dan's other Capitol Hill experience includes stints serving Representative David Dreier of California and Senator Dan Coats of Indiana. A native of Danielson, Connecticut, Dan earned a B.A. in History from Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, New York in 1984 as well as a M.A. in Public Policy and a J.D. from Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia in 1990. Lloyd Wood is AMTAC's Director of Membership and Media Outreach and is responsible for membership outreach, crafting media strategy and conducting public relations. Since starting AMTAC's media program from scratch in 2003, AMTAC has appeared on or been quoted in such forums as CNN, CNBC, BBC, PBS, NPR, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and the Financial Times. Previously, Lloyd lobbied on trade, regulatory, labor and tax issues as a Congressional Liaison for the U.S. Business & Industry Council. He also has a decade of extensive grassroots campaign experience, including managing campaign field operations that led to the defeat of a Northern Virginia referendum proposing a sales tax increase in 2002. A native of Ellinwood, Kansas, Lloyd earned a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2001 and graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Political Science and History from the University of Kansas in 1992. Lloyd is a member of the District of Columbia bar. Sara Ormand is AMTAC's Director of International Trade. She specializes in issues relating to international trade and serves as liaison between the office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Office Textile and Apparel (OTEXA).
Specializing in analyzing trade issues, Sara played a key role in producing more than two dozen cases petitioning the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) to limit the growth of textile and apparel imports from China. The success of these petitions helped persuade China to negotiate a comprehensive bilateral agreement with the United States that limited the growth of U.S. textile and apparel imports from China through the end of 2008. In addition to her trade policy research responsibilities, Sara also lobbies on Berry Amendment, furniture labeling and textile issues.
A native of Monroe, North Carolina. Sara joined AMTAC in 2003 upon graduation from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.A. in English and Economics.
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