President-elect Donald Trump nominated outgoing Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR) to be secretary of the Department of Labor.
Chavez-DeRemer has been described by the New York Times as a “a mainstream Republican” who pitches herself as an independent thinker. Trump, in his nomination, said her appointment “will achieve historic cooperation between Business and Labor that will restore the American Dream for Working Families.”
“Lori has worked tirelessly with both Business and Labor to build America’s workforce, and support the hardworking men and women of America,” a statement from Trump said.
“I look forward to working with her to create tremendous opportunity for American Workers, to expand Training and Apprenticeships, to grow wages and improve working conditions, to bring back our Manufacturing jobs,” the statement continued.
Chavez-DeRemer, a one-term congresswoman, recently lost reelection to Rep.-elect Janelle Bynum (D-OR). Had Chavez-DeRemer won the race, Trump’s pick would have narrowed the Republican’s already-thin House majority.
The announcement of her nomination won instant plaudits from Sean O’Brien, the president of the Teamsters union, who praised Trump for “putting American workers first.”