WASHINGTON, Nov. 19  -- U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Michael Froman on Wednesday vowed to work with the Congress to "move the trade agenda forward," signaling it as an area where the administration of President Barack Obama and a new Republican-controlled Congress could share common interests after midterm elections.

"My sense is that American people want to see the action. They want to see Congress and the president work together to get things done," Froman said in a speech at the Woodrow Wilson Center, a Washington-D.C. based think tank, pointing out trade as an area "both Republican leaders and the president have noted" where they can get things done together.

"I can't think of another area of policy where there is more collaboration between the executive and Congress than trade policy," Froman said, as he believed both the economic and strategic importance of trade policy would enable the White House and the Capitol Hill to work together.

Froman said the Obama administration is pursuing "the most ambitious trade agenda in history" both in term of its economic and strategic objectives, including the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) with 11 countries in the Asia-Pacific region and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations with the European Union, as well as liberalization of trade in services and environmental goods in the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Each of these trade agreements will serve the overarching goals of updating the global trading system since World War II by establishing rules of the road, strengthening U.S. partnerships and spurring broad-based economic development, he argued.

Froman also touted the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) as a critical tool for passing these complex trade agreements through Congress. The TPA, known as "fast track" trade legislation, provides that Congress must vote up or down on a proposed trade agreement without the possibility of amendment.

Without such authority, analysts say, it would be very difficult for the Obama administration to conclude the TPP and the TTIP negotiations because of concerns that Congress may amend the agreement.

U.S. lawmakers are expected to move forward the TPA legislation early next year, when Republicans take over the majority in both the Senate and House chambers. Republicans are traditionally more fond of trade agreements than Democrats who have close ties to the U.S. labor unions.

But it's still unclear whether Republicans would get enough votes to renew the TPA bill. The last time Congress granted the president trade promotion authority was in 2002, and it expired in 2007.