The fiduciary fight might be ready for another round.
The Senate finally confirmed a labor secretary on Thursday, one of that last cabinet positions to be filled.
Alexander Acosta, Trump’s second choice to run the Labor Department after fast food executive Andy Puzder dropped out in February, received a 60-38 vote, slipping in just ahead of the president’s 100th day in office.
The Hill notes that given his labor background, “Acosta is seen by both Republicans and Democrats as a better fit for the position.”
In early April, the Department of Labor announced a 60-day extension of the applicability dates of the fiduciary rule and related exemptions, including the Best Interest Contract Exemption, until June.
Acosta will “face pressure from Republicans to rewrite the retirement standards for financial advisors.” He was seen as a safer pick than Puzder, who Democrats accused of fostering an “unfriendly” environment for workers at CKE Restaurants, the holding company he runs that owns Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s.
A supporter of regulatory rollbacks, Puzder would have had a major influence on the implementation of the DOL’s fiduciary rule going forward, which had Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, in particular, questioning his qualifications and temperament for the position.
“My staff’s review of your 16-year tenure …reveals that you’ve made your fortune by squeezing the very workers you’d be charged with protecting as Labor Secretary out of wages and benefits,” Warren wrote to Puzder.
Yet she ceded little ground with Acosta as well. After an exchange during his confirmation hearing, Warren said she has “no confidence” in Acosta’s ability to lead the Labor Department, according to The Hill.
“I have to say, this has really been frustrating,” Warren told Acosta.
“If you can’t give me straight answers … I don’t have any confidence you’re the right person for this job.”