New York (AP) – Sean Duffy, The new transport secretaryfaces his first major crisis only a few hours after his oath.
Duffy, who was confirmed by the Senate TuesdayQuickly emerged as the public face of the federal government’s response to the deadly plane accident at Reagan National Airport, the airport closest to Washington, DC, an army helicopter collided with a American Airlines Jet Wednesday evening, carrying 60 passengers and four crew members while the plane landed, sending it to Carening in the Potomac icy river. All on board are feared died in what promises to be the deadliest American air crash in decades.
Here are some things to know about Duffy:
She is a former reality TV star, Bumberjack and member of the Wisconsin Congress
A former member of the Wisconsin Republican Congress, Curriculum Vitae from Duffy includes stays as a lumberjack, reality TV star, prosecutor and host of Fox News.
He was presented on “The Real World: Boston” by MTV in 1997 and met his co-host of his wife, “Fox Friends Weekend”, Rachel Campos-Duffy, on the set of “Road Rules: All Stars” MTV in 1998.
Duffy then worked as a special prosecutor and Ashland County prosecutor in northern Wisconsin. He won elections to the congress as part of the Tea wave in 2010.
An outsider that served nine years
When he first presented himself to the Congress, Duffy was considered an outsider. But he drew national attention with his campaign advertisements, which presented him to cut wood spectacularly while wearing a red flannel shirt. He told the voters that he came from a “long line of loggers” and would bring his ax to Washington.
Duffy served in the house for almost nine years. He was a member of the financial services committee and president of the insurance and housing subcommittee.
Fox News Defender
After leaving the congress in 2019, quoting the need to take care of his growing family, Duffy became a contributor to Fox News and one of Trump’s most visible defenders on cable television. He was co-host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business before being chosen for the new administration.
He was one of the many Fox personalities that Trump chose to fill his office, especially Pete HegsethThe new defense secretary.
A nine father
Duffy has nine children, the youngest of whom was born with a heart condition.
By announcing his choice, Trump noted that “Sean knows how important it is for families to travel safely and with peace of mind”.
Due to his large family, Duffy will have empathy towards those close to the accident victims, said Mark Graul, a long -standing republican agent of Wisconsin who has known Duffy for more than 25 years.
“When you have the size of the family he has, empathy is part of the process there,” said Graul. “He will want to provide certainty to all those who suffer from this.”
Graul said that Duffy is an “incredibly decent person” and “very accessible”, which will help him while he sails in this accident.
“His family is the center of his universe and more than most politicians, he cares very successful,” said Graul. “He doesn’t just want to do things to get attention. He likes to be successful.
A sprawling agency
The transport service oversees the country’s complex and aging transport system, including its highways, railways and air space. He establishes safety standards for trains, cars and trucks.
The ministry regulates the air transport industry through the Federal Aviation Administration, which was struggling with a shortage of air controllers. The agency also includes the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which regulates car manufacturers and establishes fuel economy standards for cars and trucks.
In his declaration announcing the choice, Trump had declared that Duffy “would favor excellence, competence, competitiveness and beauty when reconstruction of highways, tunnels, bridges and American airports” and said that he ” would make our sky again by eliminating Dei for pilots and controller air traffic. functions.
In his first act after his oath, Duffy Fuel mileage standards behind Set up by the Biden administration.
Its confirmation audience
During Her confirmation audience earlier this monthDuffy had promised to examine Boeing Safety problems and the “restoration of global trust” in the besieged company, as well as to hire more air controllers in the middle of a national shortage. (The plane involved in Wednesday evening collision was a CRJ-700 made by bombadier based in Canada.)
Duffy also said that he would reduce the agency’s programs to the agency and create federal rules for autonomous cars instead of leaving this to a state regulatory patchwork, a key priority of the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, which manages Trump’s government efficiency effort.
Duffy assured legislators that he would not interfere in current surveys on Musk electric car company on the safety of Tesla vehicles.
It was approved by a bipartite 77-22 vote.
___ The writer Associated Press Scott Bauer contributed to this Madison report, Wisconsin.
