WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed Lori Chavez-DeRemer to lead the Department of Labor in a bipartisan vote Monday, all but finalizing President Trump’s cabinet.
The upper chamber voted 67-32 in favor of Trump’s nominee, with 50 Republicans and 17 Democrats in support.
Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC) joined with 29 Democrats in opposition. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) didn’t cast a vote.
The confirmation means only Trump’s pick for US ambassador to the UN, New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, awaits Senate approval.
Chavez-DeRemer — a 56-year-old ex-congresswoman from Oregon who was defeated by Democratic now-Rep. Janelle Bynum in November — will now helm a department of nearly 18,000 employees with a budget of more than $15 billion.
The Senate twice blocked Chavez-DeRemer’s predecessor, Julie Su, from confirmation over bipartisan objections before finally OK’ing her. Opposition to Su included detractors such as former Democrat-turned-independent West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who took issue with her cozying up to labor unions and having a very “progressive background.”
“The Biden administration used its authority as a weapon against workers, threatening their ability to earn a living and provide for their families,” Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said Monday of the Su years.
“With President Trump back in office, we have an opportunity to enact a pro-America agenda at the Department of Labor that puts workers first, “added Cassidy, whose panel vetted Chavez-DeRemer.
“Secretary Chavez-DeRemer is committed to this mission and ready to work with the HELP Committee to secure a better future for all workers.”
Still, some Republicans had initially balked at Chavez-DeRemer’s past support for the proposed Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.
The proposed legislation, which was touted by former President Joe Biden but blocked by Republicans in the House, would have ended legal protections for employees at unionized work places who don’t wish to join a union or pay dues.
Paul, a libertarian-leaning lawmaker, was the only GOPer to vote down Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination in committee — even after she reversed support for the pro-union law under sharp questioning from him.
Democratic Sens. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, John Hickenlooper of Colorado and Tim Kaine of Virginia crossed the aisle to vote her through in the HELP Committee, celebrating her bipartisan record and qualifications for the role after more than a decade in local and state politics in Oregon.
Chavez-DeRemer picked up even more support last week when she cleared a procedural vote in the Senate, with 15 Democratic senators joining Republicans to advance her nomination.
Some powerful unions such as the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, where her father worked for 30 years, and the International Longshoreman’s Association also backed her nomination.
As for Stefanik, her vote has been delayed, given the razor-thin margin Republicans currently hold in the House. She has yet to resign from the lower chamber for the full confirmation process.
