It will be a delicate balancing act for the 54-year-old Texan, who is known for his political moderation and even-handedness.

‘A values-driven agenda that stays true to our commitment to America’s workers and environmental sustainability is not only consistent with a pro-trade agenda, but it’s also necessary for its success,’ he said.

President-elect Barack Obama on Friday announced his selection of the 44-year-old Texan, calling Kirk ‘a leader, negotiator and principled proponent of trade.’

As mayor of Dallas, Obama said, Kirk has ‘seen the promise of trade, but also its pitfalls, and he knows there is nothing inconsistent about standing up for free trade and standing up for American workers.’

Kirk, currently a partner in the Dallas office of the Houston-based powerhouse law and lobbying firm Vinson & Elkins, was the first black person to be elected Dallas mayor. He was overwhelmingly elected in 1995 and won again by a wide margin in 1999. He resigned in 2001 to run as a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, but was defeated by Republican John Cornyn.

Jeff Schott, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said Kirk’s experience as mayor should serve him well in the new post.

‘Clearly, one of the key requirements for the job is to be able to work effectively with the Congress,’ he said. ‘The political skills developed and utilized as mayor are going to be invaluable experience.’

Jan Hart Black, president of the Dallas Regional Chamber, said that as mayor, Kirk was a ‘superb trade emissary to the world’ for the region and a gifted negotiator who focused on trade with Canada and Mexico.

John Murphy, vice president for international affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said Kirk has a strong record of working with the business community.

‘People in the Texas business community who have worked with him speak highly of his understanding of international business opportunities and trade. He’s got a real-world appreciation for the importance of trade to the economy,’ Murphy said.

Frank Vargo, vice president for international economic affairs at the National Association of Manufacturers, said that it will help that Obama and Kirk seem to have a good relationship, because a trade representative must have access to the president to be effective.

Kirk has said he met Obama at a Democratic event in Chicago, where Obama sought his advice on running for the U.S. Senate. The two continued to run across each other over the years, discovering they had much in common politically and personally, including being the fathers of two daughters.

When Obama decided to run for president, Kirk has said he told him: ‘I’ll be your guy in Texas’ and became state chairman for Obama’s campaign.

Kirk, the son of civil rights activists, has long displayed a talent for building bridges. As class president of his integrated high school in the 1970s, he helped mediate racial tensions. Soon after he became mayor he worked to defuse racial tensions at Dallas City Hall.

He also helped bring a $420 million sports arena to Dallas.

Kirk is the youngest of four children. His late father, Lee, was the first black postal clerk in Austin, the Texas state capital, and his mother, Willie Mae, a schoolteacher, worked to repeal the poll tax and register blacks to vote.

After earning a law degree from the University of Texas, Kirk worked for former Sen. Lloyd Bentsen as a legislative aide. He returned to Texas to lobby the state legislature in Austin, first as an attorney with the city of Dallas, and later with a law firm. Former Texas Gov. Ann Richards appointed him secretary of state, a job he held until George W. Bush was elected governor.