Report: Obama Picks Labor Secretary
The Associated Press says it knows who Obama has picked as labor secretary:
A labor official says Rep. Hilda Solis of California will be nominated as labor secretary by President-elect Barack Obama.The Democratic congresswoman was just elected to her fifth term representing heavily Hispanic portions of eastern Los Angeles County and east L.A. She is the daughter of Mexican and Nicaraguan immigrants and has been the only member of Congress of Central American descent.
The pick, which adds another Hispanic to Obama's cabinet, will come as a bit of a blow to some progressives who had rallied behind the dark horse pick of openly gay labor activist Mary Beth Maxwell. She was being aggressively pushed by former Rep. David Bonior, who was also considered a likely choice.
Bonior said he'd take it if asked by Obama but also said it was time to pass power to a younger generation of labor leaders. Some thought Maxwell was a possibility because it would double as a gift to gays and lesbians, who'd rallied behind her candidacy.
It's still unclear why it took so long to pick a labor secretary, something that worried labor leaders who were already somewhat concerned about Obama's economic team, but by and large, labor officials say publicly and privately that they are very confident that they'll get what they want from this presidency.
Late Update: A Democratic official confirms to us that Solis is indeed Obama's official pick for the post.
Oh hell! Now we know the Real Story(tm). Obama _must_ be anti-gay now that he's run roughshod over the notion of nominating MaryBeth whoever to where was it? Anyway, since the Warren thing and now this _clearly_ anti-gay selection for whatever I'm just gonna revoke my vote and gather up my skirts and stomp off in a huff!
Harrumph!
December 18, 2008 2:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
i know (or at least i hope) this is sarcastic. but if he had picked Maxwell, us gays would just be screaming "tokenism!" especially in the wake of "warren-gate".
personally, i'd rather have someone who can do the job and not someone who was picked just cus they were gay, or hispanic, or a woman.
December 18, 2008 2:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah but think of all the constituencies he could offend (both left and right wing) if he nominated a gay Hispanic woman?
BTW yes that was snark up there... I look atrocious in skirts anyway. at 6'4" and 225lbs I just can't quite bring the look off quite right...
December 18, 2008 2:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
She may not be gay, but maybe she's willing to learn.
December 18, 2008 2:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's really funny, coming from turnip!
December 18, 2008 2:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
Maxwell is "staff" not "leadership" -- people who've worked in D.C. will know what I mean by this. She'd probably make a good chief of staff for Solis, though I doubt she'd accept under the circumstances.
I'm quite sure her getting passed over has nothing to do with her sexual orientation and everything to do with the need to have a labor secretary who can hold her own in a high-powered cabinet. It may also be a reflection on the fact that her organization, American Rights at Work, has allowed the Rick Berman's of the world to get out front on the Employee Free Choice Act rather than framing the debate on their terms.
I don't know much about Solis, but I think she'll be better than Maxwell.
December 18, 2008 2:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
Could you imagine if Maxwell had been the pick? Obama would be shredded for "caving to the gays" to make up for Warren.
December 19, 2008 12:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
Does anyone know much about Solis?
December 18, 2008 2:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
I love Wiki! :-)
December 18, 2008 2:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
she's not gay.
December 18, 2008 2:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
http://www.seiu.org/2008/12/congratulations-labor-secratary-designate-hilda-solis.php
She sounds like a great pick.
December 18, 2008 2:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
December 18, 2008 2:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
She's a progressive, pure and simple. She refused to call bush president. If that's not progressive, I don't know what is.
December 18, 2008 2:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's not Progressive, that's rude... I'm all for hanging Bush by his toenails (figuratively of course) but for a member of Congress to explicitly elide the honorific is a breach of decorum.
It's OK for you and me to call him Bush instead of the President or President Bush but M's of C should be more polite no matter how bad an asshole he is...
December 18, 2008 2:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
National Journal ranks her as the 20th most liberal member of Congress, so she's evidently a consistent Democratic vote.
December 18, 2008 2:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
I knew a little about Solis before, and what little I knew I liked. I knew nothing about Maxwell before, but what little I found out I liked. In other words, it seems to me that either of these two would make a good Labor Secretary. I expect that this will be a fine pick. I am broadly inclined to agree with the labor officials who expect this administration to be labor-friendly. Besides, by this point anyone would be an improvement over the current administration.
December 18, 2008 2:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Isn't that the truth!
Which (call me a worry troll) kind of worries me. Our expectations are so low at this point, given the last 7+ years...
December 18, 2008 2:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
I know what you are saying. At this point, however, I am more inclined to be hopeful than panicky. That could just be my own congenital naivetรฉ, however. I guess we will see.
December 18, 2008 3:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
In this case, Obama didn't pick the most qualified candidate, Maria Echaveste, profiled in today's New York Times.
December 18, 2008 2:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Mary Beth Maxwell, Linda Sanchez and Harley Shaiken were names most recently mentioned as possibilities to fill this role.
I had thought Bonior would have got the spot, but he didn't seem to want it AND I think he would have been seen as too Big 3 centric.
I don't know much of anything and will have to wait to see opinions of those who know better. In the very least her background would suggest that she'd make worker protection a major issue in future trade agreements. If the US is going to outsource jobs it should outsource values as well.
December 18, 2008 2:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
What the hell, Greg, your commentary in this post smacks of the same nonsense for which you guys criticize "mainstream" news orgs.
Solis' nomination "will come as a bit of a blow" to progressives?
Isn't that the same kind of mindless bullshit notion you guys at TPM have been trying to argue against repeatedly here?
Do you know anything about Solis' views or of the labor community's views of her?
Everything I've read about her so far suggests she is a solidly pro-labor garden-variety liberal.
And her being a Hispanic woman and "first Central American-heritage" Congresswoman getting this gig makes her nomination icing on the cake to me.
December 18, 2008 2:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
The thing that is most disturbing to me is that real qualifications do not matter in a lot of commentary. What does she know about labor, ERISA, Fair labor standards act, etc etc. It seems all this site worries about is , gender, sexual orientation, race, and political correctness. A lot of commentary on this site about Summers ignored how qualified he is.
This is not meant as a commentary on this appointee, she may be very quilified and I know nothing about her. but some of the commentary makes me think of Bush where appointments were partisan payoffs. By contrast the appointment of Chu is somebody who knows the theory, but can he administer a department and a program. We will find out!
December 18, 2008 2:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Chu isn't just a scientist, he has also been an administrator over a large department.
December 18, 2008 2:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Not just "administrator over a large department" - he's the director of Berkeley National Laboratory.
Anyone who's ever worked with scientists or engineers can probably appreciate the administrative/managerial challenges he's probably faced.
December 18, 2008 3:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
The very reason Obama put Summers in advisory position, and not an administrative position is because he was a disaster as an organization head at Harvard, and has trouble playing well with others.
I do agree that much of the criticism has been too ideological, and that Obama has picked smart, effective people who will help him get things done, with less concern for their ideology.
December 18, 2008 2:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Solis served in the California legislature. Prior to running for Congress, she chaired the Senate Industrial Relations Committee, which deals with a variety of labor issues, including workplace safety and workers' compensation. She was competent, but not terribly impressive. It's a big agency. She's never run anything larger than a small committee staff.
December 18, 2008 2:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
I work in Solis's district and know of her work. She will be a good pick and probably do a very good job! I do have to wonder if there is anybody qualified to be a cabinet officer who is not already in the congress. Barack is decimating the Democratic majority.
December 18, 2008 2:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Barack is decimating the Democratic majority."
True, he is picking a lot of members of Congress to serve in his cabinet, but the good news is he's picking members to represent a safe district or safe state for the Democrats. Solis' seat will remain in the hands of the Democrats, Salazar and Clinton's Senate seat will remain Democratic and New Mexico's Lt.Gov is a Democrat so that will remain in our hands. The only thing that will flip from D to R is the Arizona Governor's seat. Janet Napolitano's successor will be a Republican since there is no Lt. Gov, the person who is supposed to succeed the Governor is the Secretary of Seat (who is Republican Jan Brewer). Ray LaHood dosen't count since he's a outgoing member of Congress
But yes I agree good pick, but I must say that this and the LaHood completely caught me off guard.
December 18, 2008 2:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is a great pick!
December 18, 2008 2:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
FOR MCCA... Wait... dangit! I'm too late!
December 18, 2008 2:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
Fmr Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk has been chosen as trade Rep. Obama seems in a rush to make his final appointees before he leaves for vacation on Saturday.
What Cabinet-level position is left? Drug Czar is it I believe.
December 18, 2008 2:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
You forgot Secretary of Being Way Too Cool For School!
I still can't get over the fact that we elected an actual thinking human being! :-)
December 18, 2008 3:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
W#ell, it looks like Obama has done a lot of work prior to Xmas break and his Hawaiian vacation.
I hope he comes back well rested and enjoys his time away knowing he is on track to having the fastest start of a Presidential administration in US history.
No other President has had their entire cabinet picked this early.
Now, we jsut have to wait for confirmations.
whoopee!
December 18, 2008 3:35 PM | Reply | Permalink