Senate Confirms Chao as Transportation Secretary

The full Senate today confirmed the nomination of Elaine Chao as U.S. secretary of transportation. Chao’s nomination sailed through committee consideration on January 24 and today passed the Senate 93-6. During Commerce Committee consideration, chairman John Thune (R-South Dakota) called Chao “well qualified” and said she would bring strong leadership to the Transportation Department. Chao also this month garnered praise from the ranking Democrat on the committee, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Florida).

Chao returns to the department where she had served as deputy secretary of transportation during the President George H.W. Bush Administration. She also returns to a cabinet-level post, first serving as secretary of labor under President George W. Bush.

Chao steps into a role when focus this year will be on a massive infrastructure package that many expect will include airports and a debate on Capitol Hill over FAA reauthorization and air traffic control reform. During a January 11 hearing on her nomination, Chao, the wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), was non-committal on ATC reform, saying only that she believed that there should be a “national consensus” on reform proposals, adding, “I suspect this is one of the issues in which the White House will have some say.”