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President Donald Trump Selects New Labor Secretary Nominee


Late Thursday evening, President Donald Trump tweeted out that he would nominate Eugene Scalia to fill the vacant Labor Secretary position, following Alexander Acosta’s abrupt resignation earlier this month.

Scalia, a partner at the Washington office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, heads into what is expected to be a contentious confirmation before the Senate.  Democrats have already started to make their opposition known, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticizing the pick as putting “corporate interests over those of worker rights.”  (Scalia does have prior experience representing employers, such as WalMart.)  With two 2020 Democratic Presidential candidates, Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, sitting on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions that will hold initial confirmation hearings in the coming weeks, I would expect there to be a rash of media attention around the matter.

As well, as some may have heard, Scalia is the son of former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, which is sure to draw more eyes to the confirmation.  With that being said, with Republicans maintaining majority control of the Senate, so long as they vote along party lines, Scalia should be confirmed.  In the interim, until Scalia (or another nominee is confirmed), acting Labor Secretary Patrick Pizzella will remain at the head of the agency.


For additional information:  https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-to-nominate-gene-scalia-son-of-late-supreme-court-justice-antonin-scalia-for-secretary-of-labor

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