Trump says he is naming former Wisconsin Rep. Sean Duffy to be transportation secretary

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President-elect Donald Trump said Monday he is naming former Wisconsin Rep. Sean Duffy as his nominee for transportation secretary, as he continues to roll out picks for his Cabinet.

Duffy is a former reality TV star who was one of Trump’s most visible defenders on cable information — a prime concern for the media-concentrated president-elect. Duffy served in the House for nearly nine years, was a member of the budgetary Services Committee and chairman of the subcommittee on insurance and housing. He left Congress in 2019, and is co-host of “The net income” on Fox Business.

In his announcement, Trump noted that Duffy is married to a Fox information host, calling him “the husband of a wonderful woman, Rachel Campos-Duffy, a STAR on Fox information.”

A spokesperson for Fox information Media wished Duffy “the best of luck in his profitability to Washington” and said he left the business Monday.

Duffy is so far the second Fox-affiliated television host that Trump has named to his Cabinet. Trump last week announced his selection of Fox information host Pete Hegseth to serve as his defense secretary.

Trump said Duffy would use his encounter and relationships built over the years in Congress “to maintain and rebuild our country’s Infrastructure, and fulfill our Mission of ushering in The Golden Age of trip, focusing on Safety, Efficiency, and innovation. Importantly, he will greatly elevate the trip encounter for all Americans!”

Duffy in 2022 ruled out a run for Wisconsin governor despite pleas from Trump to make a bid, saying he needed to worry for his nine children, including his youngest kid who had a heart state.

He is a former lumberjack athlete and frequent Fox information contributor. He was featured on MTV’s “The Real globe: Boston” in 1997. He met his wife on the set of MTV’s “Road Rules: All Stars” in 1998.

A reality television background before politics is not unusual in Trump’s globe. The former president launched his political career after his hit reality display, “ The Apprentice,”

Duffy, after his period on reality television, worked as a special prosecutor and Ashland County district attorney. He won election to Congress as part of a tea event wave in 2010.

When he first ran for office, Duffy was largely considered an underdog but attracted national attention for his campaign ads, in which he donned a red flannel shirt and chopped trees. He told voters he came from a “long line of lumberjacks” and would bring his axe to Washington.

He served until resigning in 2019.

The Transportation Department oversees the country’s complicated transportation structure, including pipelines, railroads, cars, trucks, the airlines and mass transit systems as well as federal capital for highways.

If confirmed, Duffy would receive over at a period of tremendous transformation, especially on the country’s highways. Traffic deaths remain near record highs at a period when recent technologies are being introduced that could assist make the roads safer. Multiple companies are deploying autonomous robotaxis and even driverless semis with no specific federal regulations. And the nascent shift from gasoline to electric vehicles presents safety problems of its own, especially with battery fires that can be challenging to extinguish.

The department includes the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which regulates automakers, including Elon Musk’s Tesla. The department sets fuel economy standards for cars and trucks and regulates the airline industry through the Federal Aviation Administration, which is grappling with a shortage of air traffic controllers to ensure the secure and orderly flow of air trip.

Nicholas Calio, president and CEO of Airlines for America, said the association was “thrilled” by the selection of Duffy.

“Congressman Duffy has a proven track record for getting things done, and we are eager to collaborate with him on key issues impacting the U.S. airline industry,” Calio said.

Trump has criticized electric vehicles as expensive and unreliable and called President Joe Biden’s policy to promote them “lunacy. He also has said EV manufacturing will ruin auto industry jobs and has falsely claimed that battery-powered cars don’t work in cold weather and are unable to trip long distances.

Trump has softened his rhetoric about electric vehicles in recent months after Musk endorsed him and campaigned heavily for his election.

Even so, industry officials expect Trump to try to leisurely a shift to electric cars, and a responsibility capitalization for EV purchases is reportedly among those the Trump administration may seek to eliminate next year.

Trump, in his statement, said Duffy would “prioritize Excellence, Competence, Competitiveness and Beauty when rebuilding America’s highways, tunnels, bridges and airports.” Trump, as he campaigned for the White House, would sometimes complain about the state of air trip in particular, lamenting that the country’s “once-revered airports” are a “filthy, crowded mess.”

Duffy, Trump said Monday, “will make our skies secure again by eliminating DEI for pilots and air traffic controllers.” DEI refers to “diversity, stake and inclusion” programs.

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worth reported from recent York and Superville reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Matthew Daly and Amanda Seitz in Washington, Tom Krisher in Detroit and David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this update.