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You're Hired: Tracking the Trump Administration Transition - December 8, 2016
Trump Administration (first term)  Vice President Mike Pence Cabinet • White House staff • Transition team • Trump's second term |
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This is the December 8, 2016, edition of a daily email sent from November 2016 to September 2017 that covered Donald Trump's presidential transition team, potential cabinet appointees, and the different policy positions of those individuals who may have had an effect on the new administration. Previous editions of "You're Hired" can be found here.
Nominations and Appointments
As of December 8, 2016, Trump had officially announced eight out of 15 cabinet nominations.
Scott Pruitt
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt (R) is Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency. If he is confirmed as the administrator of the EPA, Pruitt—who has been Oklahoma’s attorney general since 2011—will oversee an $8 billion budget and more than 15,000 employees in addition to shaping federal environmental policy under the Trump administration. Pruitt has been a critic of environmental policy under the Obama administration, calling himself a “leading advocate against the EPA’s activist agenda,” and has questioned the idea of human-made climate change.
What does Pruitt’s nomination mean for the EPA and U.S. environmental policy?
In short, it means that the Trump administration likely intends to roll back many of the environmental regulations put in place by the EPA under President Obama and will restrict the role of the federal government in making decisions on environmental policy in the states. Rescinding environmental regulations was a key component of Trump’s campaign platform.
- Clean Power Plan: In 2015, Pruitt led Oklahoma in joining more than two dozen other states in a lawsuit against the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, which requires states to reduce carbon dioxide emissions through limitations on emissions from power plants. In a National Review op-ed from last May, Pruitt said, “This EPA regulation, one of the most ambitious ever proposed, will shutter coal-fired power plants, significantly increase the price of electricity for American consumers, and enact by executive fiat the very same cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions that Congress has rejected. The Clean Power Plan was promulgated without any consultation with Congress. No bills were debated, no votes were taken, and the representatives of the American people had no opportunity to object or offer their own suggestions. The checks and balances built into our system of government were simply ignored as inconvenient impediments to the president’s agenda.”
- The ease or difficulty with which Pruitt and the Trump administration could rescind the Clean Power Plan has been debated. Supporters of the plan have said the process would be rigorous and met with legal challenges. Opponents of the plan have said that Trump could reverse it through executive order. Whichever proves correct, if the new administration seeks to rescind the plan, Pruitt will play a central role in the process.
- Rescinding or modifying the Clean Power Plan could have an international impact. The plan is part of how the Obama administration intended to fulfill U.S. obligations under the Paris Climate Agreement, a non-binding accord between close to 200 countries to “reduce the risks and impacts of climate change.” Trump previously called the agreement a “bad deal” but more recently said that he has an “open mind to it.”
- Waters of the United States Rule: Pruitt has also been critical of the Waters of the United States rule, which seeks to clarify federal jurisdiction over rivers, lakes, marshes, and streams throughout the country. In February 2015, Pruitt told Congress, “The EPA should undoubtedly have a role in solving interstate water quality issues. That role should not, however, be so expansive so as to render virtually every property owner in the nation subject to often unpredictable, unsound, and Byzantine federal regulatory regimes. … Simply put, the proposed rule is a classic case of overreach.” He added, “the rule is unlawful and must be withdrawn.”
- Federal vs. state policy: One of Pruitt’s main criticisms of environmental policy under the Obama administration has been what he calls a “one-size-fits-all strategy.” In his 2010 campaign for attorney general, he stated, “There’s a mentality emanating from Washington today that says, ‘We know best.’ It’s a one-size-fits-all strategy, a command-and-control kind of approach, and we’ve got to make sure we know how to respond to that.” Pruitt has argued that the individual states should have more control over environmental policy. After taking office in 2011, he established a “Federalism Unit” in the Office of Solicitor General in Oklahoma. The mission of the unit, Pruitt says, is “to more effectively combat unwarranted regulation and systematic overreach by federal agencies, boards and offices.”
Where does Pruitt stand on climate change?
Pruitt has expressed skepticism of the argument that human activity has contributed to climate change, and he has encouraged further debate on the issue. In a May 2016 op-ed for National Review, he said, “Healthy debate is the lifeblood of American democracy, and global warming has inspired one of the major policy debates of our time. That debate is far from settled. Scientists continue to disagree about the degree and extent of global warming and its connection to the actions of mankind. That debate should be encouraged — in classrooms, public forums, and the halls of Congress.”
Reactions to Pruitt’s nomination
Reactions on Capitol Hill to news of Pruitt’s nomination have been divided along party lines, with Democrats voicing opposition and Republicans expressing support.
- Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.): “[Pruitt] has a very successful history with his time in Oklahoma and I look forward to confirmation hearings, and doing it quickly, so that President Trump, when he comes into office, can have his team on the ground and ready to go.”
- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.): “At a time when climate change is the great environmental threat to the entire planet, it is sad and dangerous that Mr. Trump has nominated Scott Pruitt to lead the EPA.”
- Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.): “He’s very familiar with all the issues. He’s been involved in all the issues having to do with the EPA that I’ve been involved in. I’m very excited.”
- Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii): “We’re certainly going to draw a line in the sand. This is the worst-case scenario when it comes to clean air and clean water, to nominate a climate denier to the agency charged with protecting our natural resources.”
Linda McMahon
Trump has selected businesswoman Linda McMahon to lead the Small Business Administration, a federal agency that was created in 1953 “to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small business concerns.” McMahon is the co-founder and former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment. She has never held public office but ran as a Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Connecticut in 2010 and 2012.
Earlier this year, McMahon co-founded a company called Women’s Leadership LIVE, LLC, which aims to promote leadership opportunities for women. In describing the new venture, McMahon said, “Our goal is to build a world where women obtaining and exercising power is both expected and commonplace. Even in 2016, women are clearly underrepresented in leadership. ... This is not about setting quotas, but about having a diversity of perspectives and experiences in decision-making roles. We are making progress, but there are still glass ceilings that need to be cracked.”
The administrator position is a cabinet-level position and will have to be confirmed by the Senate. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who ran against McMahon in 2010, reacted positively to news of her nomination. “Her sense of focus and drive are qualities much in need along with her devotion to jobs and economic growth which the Trump administration needs. I’m hopeful she will create jobs and drive economic progress for the country,” said Blumenthal. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), who ran against McMahon in 2012, also spoke positively of her nomination, saying, “Linda McMahon's a talented and experienced businessperson, there's no doubt about it. She helped shepherd the WWE from a mere idea into an incredibly successful enterprise. Of course I know firsthand what a fierce fighter Linda McMahon is, and though we haven't always seen eye to eye, I have confidence she'll bring that fight to the SBA on behalf of Connecticut small businesses.”
Possible Nominations
Andrew Puzder
Andrew Puzder, the CEO of CKE Restaurants, which owns fast-food chains like Hardee’s and Green Burrito, is reportedly at the top of Trump’s list for the Department of Labor. Puzder served as a trustee for a joint fundraising committee for Trump’s presidential campaign and the Republican National Committee. At the 2016 Republican National Convention, he was on the Platform Committee as a delegate from California and was a co-chairman of the subcommittee on “Restoring the American Dream,” which focused on economic, labor, and tax issues. In 2010, he co-authored a book called Job Creation: How it Really Works and Why Government Doesn’t Understand It. In the book, he argued, “Private enterprise, unencumbered by excessive government intervention, will create jobs.”
Here’s where Puzder stands of a few key labor issues:
- Overtime Rule: In May 2016, the Labor Department released a new rule requiring overtime pay for workers earning less than $47,500 per year. This is double the previous threshold of $23,660 per year and would affect an estimated 4 million workers in the U.S. The rule was set to go into effect on December 1, 2016, but a federal judge blocked its implementation in late November. Puzder has been critical of the rule. In an op-ed for Forbes, he wrote, “This new rule will simply add to the extensive regulatory maze the Obama Administration has imposed on employers, forcing many to offset increased labor expense by cutting costs elsewhere. In practice, this means reduced opportunities, bonuses, benefits, perks and promotions.” If the rule manages to survive its current legal challenge, Puzder and the Trump administration could seek to rescind it, though the ease with which this could be done—as with the Clean Power Plan discussed above—has been debated.
- Minimum Wage: Puzder has said that he is not opposed to “raising the minimum wage rationally” but is opposed to increasing it to $15 an hour, which, he has said, would cause working-class Americans to lose their jobs. In a 2014 op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, Puzder wrote, “The feds can mandate a higher wage, but some jobs don’t produce enough economic value to bear the increase. ... The better policy would be to encourage the private sector to create more middle-income jobs.” Puzder added, “An effective minimum-wage policy would also recognize that there are at least two distinct groups of workers who earn the minimum wage. First, there are breadwinners trying to support a family. … Then there are young people who need entry-level job experience to get on the ladder of opportunity. … Finally, an effective policy would consider geography.”
- Immigration: Though the Department of Labor is not the primary agency responsible for federal immigration policy, it does oversee immigration programs and laws that intersect with labor such as, for example, the administration of H-1B visas and the enforcement of various provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Puzder holds a favorable view of immigration and he discussed his opinions on how he believes the issue relates to the economy and labor in a 2015 op-ed for The Wall Street Journal. He said, “Legal immigration policies should support economic growth. If current quotas are bringing in enough talent, let’s keep them. If more immigration or less red tape will boost the economy, let’s try that. Guest-worker visas should ebb and flow with the economy. Legal immigration should focus more on what workers can contribute to the economy, as is the case in most other nations, and less on distant familial relationships. The best way to protect American workers is to generate economic growth. This is not synonymous with aggressively restricting immigration. Most studies conclude that immigration contributes to economic growth as well as innovation, and research and development.”
- Puzder has noted that he differs with Trump on immigration policy. In an op-ed from July 2016 that he wrote with Stephen Moore, an economic advisor to Trump’s presidential campaign, he said, “In our opinion, legal immigrants are an asset to the country. We believe that deporting 11 million people is unworkable, and we hope in the end Mr. Trump comes to this same conclusion. Deportation should be pursued only when an illegal immigrant has committed a felony or become a ‘public charge.’”
See also
- You're Hired: Tracking the Trump Administration Transition
- Donald Trump presidential transition team
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