Sean Duffy is confirmed by the Senate to lead the Transportation Department
Sean Duffy is confirmed by the Senate to lead the Transportation Department
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Sean Duffy was confirmed Tuesday as transportation secretary, giving him a key role in helping President Donald Trump cut regulations and fix the nation's infrastructure. The former Wisconsin congressman has promised safer Boeing planes, less regulation and help for U.S. companies developing self-driving cars -- while not giving any breaks to Elon Musk, a key player in that technology.
Duffy, a 53-year-old former reality TV star, was approved with bipartisan support on a 77-22 vote in the Senate. He takes over the Department of Transportation at a crucial time at the agency, a massive employer of more than 55,000 that spends tens of billions of dollars annually, oversees the nation’s highways, railroads and airspace and sets safety standards for trains, cars and trucks.
At his confirmation hearing earlier this month, Duffy vowed to “restore global confidence” in Boeing, hire more air traffic controllers, cut DEI programs at DOT and create federal rules for self-driving cars instead of leaving that to patchwork of state regulations that critics said holds back U.S. development.
One of the biggest beneficiaries to a such a regulatory overhaul would be Musk. Stock his electric vehicle maker, Tesla, has soared since Trump was elected president on hopes that unified federal rules will be passed. Investors are also expecting the DOT's investigations into Tesla to be eased now that Musk is a key adviser to the president.
