Who Is Labor Pick Alexander Acosta?

Story by: Miami Editor Paul Scicchitano

WASHINGTON, DC — President Trump announced on Thursday that he has selected Miami law school dean and former U.S. Attorney R. Alexander Acosta to head the Department of Labor.

"The nominee for secretary of the department of labor will be Mr. Alex Acosta," Trump said in announcing his first Hispanic nominee. "I think he will be a tremendous secretary of Labor."

The announcement came one day after Andrew Puzder, the CEO of CKE Restaurants, dropped out of consideration for the position as numerous senators voiced concerns that threatened to tank his chances of confirmation.

"I am deeply grateful and honored for the opportunity to serve my country," the 48-year-old Acosta said in a statement released after the announcement. "I thank the president and his staff for their confidence in me and I am eager to work tirelessly on behalf of the American worker."

The president brushed away reports that his new administration is floundering. "I turn on the TV, open the newspapers and I see stories of chaos, yet it is the exact opposite," he asserted. "This administration is running like a fine-tuned machine despite the fact that I can’t get my cabinet approved and they’re outstanding people."

Numerous news agencies reported that Acosta, a former member of the National Labor Relations Board, would be named ahead of the president's announcement from the East Room of the White House.

A native of Miami and a first-generation lawyer, Acosta became the second dean of the college of law at Florida International University in 2009. He also is a former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, who earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard College and his law degree from Harvard Law School.

Trump highlighted his upcoming rally planned for Saturday in Florida, the first since his inauguration. "I will be in Melbourne, Florida 5 o’clock on Saturday and I just heard that the crowds are massive that want to be there," the president said.

Acosta practiced law at the firm of Kirkland & Ellis and taught law at George Mason School of Law after serving as law clerk to Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., then a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Acosta has served in three presidential-appointed, Senate-confirmed positions. He was a member of the National Labor Relations Board, where he participated in or authored more than 125 opinions. He went on to be the first Hispanic to hold the rank of Assistant Attorney General.

Most recently, Acosta served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and was the longest serving U.S. Attorney in the District since the 1970s.

While Acosta served as U.S. Attorney, the Southern District prosecuted a number of high-profile defendants, including Jack Abramoff for fraud, Jose Padilla for terrorism and Charles “Chuckie” Taylor Jr. for torture, which was the first torture case of its kind in the United States.

He also prosecuted Cali Cartel founders Miguel and Gilberto Rodriquez-Orejuela for the importation of 200,000 kilos of cocaine, which resulted in a $2.1 billion forfeiture.

In addition to his government work, Acosta has ties to the banking industry, serving as chairman of U.S. Century Bank, the largest domestically owned Hispanic community bank in Florida and one of the 15 largest Hispanic community banks in the nation.

At FIU, Acosta spearheaded the effort to establish the J.M. degree in banking compliance, BSA and anti-money-laundering in the law school. During his tenure, FIU law graduates have ranked first among Florida’s 11 law schools in the bar- passage rate three times in a row — for the July 2015, February 2016 and July 2016 examinations, according to university officials.

Commenting on the appointment, FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg described Acosta as a "thoughtful, conscientious American" dedicated to excellence, integrity and public service. "We are proud that he is the first Hispanic nominated to serve in President Trump’s cabinet," he said.

In response to questions from reporters, Trump insisted that former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn "was just doing his job" regarding conversations he had with Russia’s ambassador to the U.S.

"He did something wrong with respect to the vice president and I thought that was not acceptable," Trump added, referring to misleading statements Flynn made to Vice President Mike Pence and other White House officials concerning the conversations.

Pressed whether Russian President Vladimir Putin might be testing him in the first months of his presidency, Trump refused to say whether he planned to take any action against Russia or what such action might entail.

"It would be much easier for me to be tough on Russia but then we're not going to make a deal," he said. "Maybe I'm not going to be able to do a deal with Russia but at least I will have tried."

The president also acknowledged that he had spoken to Putin twice in recent months — once after the election and once after the inauguration.

"We had a very good talk, especially the second one," Trump said. "It lasted for a pretty long period of time."

Speaking for more than an hour, Trump said that his administration plans to release a new executive order next week on travel and immigration and that he also plans to unveil an Obamacare alternative in early March.

"The new executive order is being tailored to the decision we got down from the court," he told reporters.

With respect to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA policy started by the Obama administration that allows certain undocumented immigrants to remain in the United States, Trump insisted that he will approach the issue with "heart."

"I find it very, very hard doing what the law says I have to do," he lamented.

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Photo credit: Michael Vadon