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Recks

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    Confirmation of Linda Chavez-Thompson as Secretary of Labor

    in Congress

    Posted

    Mr. President,

     

    I rise today in strong support for Ms. Chavez-Thompson's nomination to serve as Secretary of Labor. I believe that her experience and commitment to the office makes her highly qualified to serve the nation as our Labor Secretary. Furthermore, I believe that the President's faith and trust in Ms. Chavez-Thompson must not be ignored.

     

    I'll begin with my general guiding philosophy in terms of Presidential nominees. I hold that the President deserves a cabinet which is supportive of his agenda, and that is qualified and competent to lead large parts of the federal government. The first qualification, having the trust of the President, is made obvious with a nomination. The second part, ensuring qualification and competency, rests on the Senate.

     

    So, let us consider the qualifications and competency of Ms. Chavez-Thompson. As she grew up in the cotton fields of Texas, she learned what hard labor looks like. She learned what it means to have job to help support her family. She rose through the ranks of American labor organizations and unions thanks to her commitment to helping working folks. She ended up being the highest woman and person of color to be elected to an executive leadership position with the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor organization.

     

    She has proven that she stands for working people and that she can lead a large organization. When I asked her whether she can lead the Labor Department in its purpose of helping wage earners, including improving their working conditions and advancing profitable employment, she answered with a confident "yes." This is why I support Ms. Chavez-Thompson's nomination - she has the trust of the President and meets the qualifications required for such an office.

     

    Unfortunately, many on the other side of the aisle have different standards when it comes to confirming a presidential nominee. Ideological purity and commitment to a conservative worldview is suddenly requisite to serve in public office, if you ask some of my colleagues. From where I'm standing, there appear to be three excuses used by the minority party to seek to obstruct the confirmation of wholly-qualified public servants. First, is the fact that Ms. Chavez-Thompson is a politically-active Democrat. Second, her stance on immigration. And third, false and, quite simply disgusting, conspiracy theories about Venezuela.

     

    It is no secret that Ms. Chavez-Thompson is a Democrat. She served as a  vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, beginning in 1997. She was an honorary co-chair of Bill Clinton's re-election campaign. But these things should not disqualify a public servant from doing her job. If being politically active was an insurmountable barrier to public service, I'm afraid none of us would have any ground to stand on in this hallowed chamber. We need only look to the previous secretary of the Labor Department, Ms. Chao, who also happens to be the wife of the former Senate Minority Leader! If there wasn't a concern about Ms. Chao's political activities or a conflict of interest, there certainly should not have been a concern when Ms. Chavez-Thompson was nominated.

     

    The second argument against Ms. Chavez-Thompson is her view on immigration. I believe that any previous Labor Secretary's views on immigration policy would have been dismissed out of hand as being totally irrelevant. She isn't being nominated for ICE Director, or the DHS chief. No, she is being considered for a department that seeks to promote wage earners across the United States. Nowhere in existing law does the purpose of the Department of Labor delineate between citizens and immigrants, either undocumented or otherwise. The Secretary of Labor must fight for "the welfare of the wage earners of the United States." Period, full stop.

     

    Finally, I turn to a topic that makes me quite sad to even consider: the fact the Senators in this very chamber have maligned the name of Ms. Chavez-Thompson by insinuating, or even outright stating, she was involved in a coup attempt in Venezuela. She vehemently denied this under oath in the Senate HELP Committee, and the fact that these lies continue to be peddled, and Senators refuse to retract their offensive comments is disappointing at best. At worst, they have bought into anti-American propaganda.

     

    So, Mr. President, there you have it. The three major complaints my Republican colleagues have against Ms. Chavez-Thompson are nothing more than an excuse to win a silly partisan game. They want to do anything to hurt the new President, and so this is what they're trying. It is sad, and I am disappointed in their antics. But I will still urge the more sensible of my colleagues to see past the charade of some colleagues, and consider Ms. Chavez-Thomspon on her many merits.

     

    I yield.

    • Like 2

    @PCarney

    in Public Affairs + Activities

    Posted

    @PCarney: I don't know where @Montbatten and @SenMalBennett were when @JackieJKS and I were hammering out the final touches on the #RecoveryAndReform deal, but I do know where @JosephEMurphy was: helping us draft the bill!

    • Like 1

    @PCarney

    in Public Affairs + Activities

    Posted

    @PCarney: I'm a big fan of process in the Senate - we are, after all, the world's greatest deliberative body. But with millions of jobs and trillions in savings are on the line in 24 hours, sometimes you need to vote right away. (1/2)

    @PCarney: Those who are objecting to the #RecoveryAndReform Act on the basis of us rushing are throwing in the towel and giving up on the economy. W/o a deal by the end of the quarter, we will see another Great Depression. (2/2)

    • Like 1
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