washington u.s. president donald trump intend nominate businessman william hagerty next u.s. ambassador japan white house say thursday hagerty tennessee native found private equity firm hagerty peterson spend several years japan boston consult group management consultancy late serve white house former president george h.w bush nomination approve u.s. congress replace caroline kennedy hold position 2013 january japan key u.s. security ally asia face rise china japanese prime minister shinzo abe become first world leader visit trump nov. election victory two hold summit talk washington florida february however trump criticize japan along china germany large trade imbalances unite state worry tokyo call ally pay defense trump also disappoint japan withdraw unite state 12-nation trans pacific partnership trade pact main economic pillar former president barack obama pivot u.s. focus asia trump abe agree last month launch bilateral economic dialogue due start next month discuss issue macroeconomic policies trade infrastructure investment friction likely autos agriculture month u.s. secretary state rex tillerson visit tokyo underscore important alliance japan work together counter threat pose north korea nuclear missile program koichi hori chairman consult firm dream incubator inc former president boston consult japan work hagerty early 1990s describe reuters january pragmatist might always toe trump conservative line trade japanese company play key role u.s. economy employ 800,000 american workers contribute 78 billion u.s. export 2014 accord u.s. figure trump nominate businessman hagerty japan ambassador-white house