{"id":10479,"date":"2024-11-27T08:10:39","date_gmt":"2024-11-27T13:10:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jordanbarab.com\/confinedspace\/?p=10479"},"modified":"2024-11-27T01:37:11","modified_gmt":"2024-11-27T06:37:11","slug":"chavez-deremer-the-least-clowny-in-the-cabinet-clown-car","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jordanbarab.com\/confinedspace\/2024\/11\/27\/chavez-deremer-the-least-clowny-in-the-cabinet-clown-car\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump’s Labor Pick: The Best Clown in the Cabinet Clown Car?"},"content":{"rendered":"

L<\/span>abor advocates may not be dancing in the streets, but they at least seem to be emitting a small (very small) sigh of relief with the nomination of Lori Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer for Secretary of Labor. I mean, it could have been much, much worse: think of other unemployed job-seekers like Kari Lake and Hershel Walker (remember him?). Former Carl\u2019s Jr. and Hardee\u2019s CEO Andrew Puzder, who crashed and burned as Trump’s first term Labor Secretary nominee, was apparently also in the running.<\/p>\n

Why the (very small) sigh of relief? Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer has a fairly moderate record on labor issues, especially for a Republican. She actually co-sponsored the Protecting the Right to Organize<\/a> (PRO) Act which would have made union organizing much easier, as well as the “Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act<\/a>” which would lower barriers for public safety workers to collectively bargain.<\/p>\n

My sources on Capitol Hill tell me that she was mysteriously absent during many of the most anti-labor votes in the Education and Workforce Committee, chaired by anti-union, Communist-Under-Every-Democratic-Bed Virginia Foxx (R-NC).<\/p>\n

But the main reason that she was nominated was undoubtedly her support from Teamsters President Sean O\u2019Brien, Trump’s favorite union President. O’Brien, you may recall, had a prime speaking spot at the Republican National Convention, and then went on to endorse no one for President<\/a>. Republicans made major lip service<\/del> efforts this election to appeal to working class voters.<\/p>\n

Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer was a one-term Oregon Congresswoman who narrowly lost to Democratic state Rep. Janelle Bynum, despite endorsement by the local Teamsters, a United Food and Commercial Workers local and nine other local unions<\/a>. (Her father was a Teamster.) The AFL-CIO gave her only a 10% score<\/a> on her first (and only) term in Congress when assessing her voters \u201con issues important to working families.\u201d She opposed bills that provided funding for Medicaid coverage and food assistance, and supported a bill that would have undermined unemployment insurance. (The AFL-CIO rating did not reflect her position on the PRO Act, because it never came to a vote.)\"regulatory<\/p>\n

Proof in the Pudding<\/h2>\n

So, all of that is well and fine, but her past performance tells us less than nothing about what the future holds for the Trump administration’s support for, or war against workers’ rights and their safety in this country, nor the many laws enforced by the Department of Labor. Where will she stand on OSHA’s life-saving and much-needed heat standard, or standards covering infectious diseases and workplace violence? How hard will she crack down on child labor violators if those violators are friends of more powerful actors in the Trump administration? Will she fight against inevitable proposed cuts in the budgets of the Department of Labor, or OSHA or MSHA or the Wage and Hour administration? Where will she stand on the efforts by Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos to declare the NLRB unconstitutional?<\/p>\n

Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer’s past performance tells us less than nothing about what the future holds for workers in this country, or the laws enforced by the Department of Labor. Where will she stand on OSHA’s life-saving and much-needed heat standard, or standards covering infectious diseases and workplace violence?<\/strong> <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And where will she stand on Schedule F<\/a>, which would destroy civil service protections for federal employees?\u00a0 What are her positions on the anti-labor recommendations from Project 2025<\/a>?\u00a0 On recommendations that small employers get a pass on a first OSHA citation, overtime protections, repealing \u00a0the Davis-Bacon Act or making it easier for children to work hazardous jobs?<\/p>\n

Although the Secretary of Labor doesn’t have any legal or political authority over the National Labor Relations Board or the fate of the PRO Act, in a perfect world the Secretary of Labor should be the Administration’s chief advocate for workers. Will she be that advocate?<\/p>\n

Ultimately, of course, it doesn’t matter where she stands on all of these issues, but rather how subservient she will be to the MAGA ideologues in the White House. As A<\/em>FL-CIO President Liz Shuler said<\/a>, \u201cYou can stand with working people, or you can stand with Project 2025, but you can\u2019t stand with both.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even in the best of Democratic administrations, the Labor Department doesn’t carry a lot of weight in the White House when there is strong opposition to its initiatives from powerful White House staff or hostile Cabinet agencies.\u00a0 It’s hard to see her successfully fighting in the Cabinet Room or at OMB for stronger OSHA standards. At least not if she wants to keep her job.<\/p>\n

And we haven’t even begun to discuss Elon and Vivek’s DOGE (Department of Government Elimination<\/del> Efficiency) while likely will not find OSHA or any Department of Labor programs to be “efficient.”\u00a0 In a battle between Elon and Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer, I know where I’d put my money.<\/p>\n

Republican and Business Opposition<\/h2>\n

But it may not be smooth sailing for her confirmation.\u00a0 Inexperience, incompetence and sexual assault are clearly not disqualifiers for Trump’s Cabinet nominations, but being too close to labor\u00a0 may be. Especially if you endorsed the PRO Act.<\/p>\n

Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy, the incoming Chair of the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee which will hold the hearing on Chavez-DeRemer’s confirmation, warned that<\/a> \u201cI will need to get a better understanding of her support for Democrat legislation in Congress that would strip Louisiana\u2019s ability to be a right to work state, and if that will be her position going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

It could have been worse. We can hope that Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer will side with labor on some issues, even if she never wins.\u00a0 But the appointment of a hard-line dedicated anti-labor ideologue who spends their time plotting and planning ways to weaken the labor movement and take away workers’ rights would have been worse.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On the other hand, Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley, who has supported some labor-friendly legislation, called Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer is a \u201cgreat pick.\u201d Hawley, however, doesn’t sit on the HELP Committee.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0 New York Post<\/a> reported that “President-elect Trump\u2019s nomination for labor secretary is a \u201ctoxic\u201d anti-conservative RINO with cozy ties to unions, outraged critics told The Post.”<\/p>\n

\u201cRank and file labor was an important part of his coalition, but I don\u2019t think [Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer] is any good at all. People are very worried about her,\u201d a person close to Trump said. \u201cBusiness won\u2019t like her, Chamber of Commerce won\u2019t like her. This was not a great appointment.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Brien thanked Trump Friday after the nomination \u201cfor putting American workers first by nominating Rep. Lori Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer for US Labor Secretary.\u201d<\/p>\n

A GOP insider warned that her pro-union issues are certain to complicate her Senate confirmation.\u00a0 \u201cThere are going to be a lot of Republicans who can\u2019t vote for this because it\u2019s toxic for them,\u201d the insider said. \u201cThe anti-right to work stuff. That is toxic for so many Republicans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because the last thing you want is a pro-labor Secretary of Labor.<\/p>\n

Some administration officials are trying to calm the business waters<\/a> by reassuring opponents that the White House will appoint a Deputy Secretary of Labor more to their liking.<\/p>\n

In Conclusion<\/h2>\n

The bottom line is that despite their strong support from the white working class, and increased support from workers 0f color, the Republican party — and especially the Trump administration — remain anti-worker and anti-labor at its core. And it’s extremely unlikely that Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer will be able to change that.<\/p>\n

Democrats on the HELP Committee must ask her direct questions about her support for DOL budgets, support for health and safety standard, workers rights and child labor. That will give us a feel for how strongly she will stand up to the anti-labor forces in the incoming administration.<\/p>\n

The main “bright side” is that it could have been worse. We can hope that Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer will side with labor on some issues, even if she never wins.\u00a0 But much worse would have been the appointment of a hard-line, dedicated anti-labor ideologue who spends every hour of their day plotting and planning ways to weaken the labor movement and take away workers’ rights.<\/p>\n

And even if she doesn’t win the big battles (or any battles), a supportive “pro-labor” boss in a Republican Labor Department can raise the moral in the Department.<\/p>\n

Those may be small things, but perhaps that’s all that we can hope for these days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Labor advocates may not be dancing in the streets, but they at least seem to be emitting a small (very small) sigh of relief with the nomination of Lori Ch\u00e1vez-DeRemer for Secretary of Labor. I mean, it could have been much, much worse: think of other unemployed job-seekers like Kari Lake and Hershel Walker (remember […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10483,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[295,33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2024-elections","category-dol"],"yoast_head":"\nTrump's Labor Pick: The Best Clown in the Cabinet Clown Car? - Confined Space<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Trump has nominated a pro-labor former Republican Congresswoman as Secretary of Labor. 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