A former Wisconsin congressman and Fox Business host, Sean Duffy, was named on Monday by President-elect Donald J. Trump as his choice to lead the Transportation Department.
In the statement announcing his choice, Mr. Trump praised Mr. Duffy as a “tremendous and well-liked public servant” with the experience needed to lead the department, which has an annual budget of more than $100 billion and a vast work force.
“Sean will use his experience and the relationships he has built over many years in Congress to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure and usher in a golden age of travel,” Mr. Trump said in a statement.
Mr. Duffy served in Congress from 2011 to 2019 as a Wisconsin Republican. He resigned in September 2019 to help care for a newborn daughter with a birth defect, according to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Mr. Duffy joined Fox News Media as a contributor in 2020. He currently co-hosts “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business with Dagen McDowell and offers political analysis across all Fox News Media platforms. He rose to fame on the MTV reality show, “The Real World: Boston.”
If confirmed, Mr. Duffy will oversee a Federal Aviation Administration struggling with air traffic control and a Federal Railroad Administration still pushing for safety reforms after a fiery derailment in East Palestine, Pa., in 2023. He will also be in charge of assessing how to rebuild the country’s crumbling infrastructure.
Mr. Duffy will also be managing remaining funds from the 2021 $1 trillion infrastructure law, a cornerstone of the Biden administration’s efforts to prioritize rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and shape its priorities.
A Wisconsin native, Mr. Duffy began his political career as a district attorney for Ashland County, in the state’s north. He resigned after winning his congressional election. During his time in Congress, Mr. Duffy served on the House Financial Services Committee.
Mr. Trump credited Mr. Duffy with clearing “extensive Legislative hurdles to build the largest road and bridge project in Minnesota History.” Mr. Duffy was a co-sponsor of bipartisan legislation, led by Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat of Minnesota, to support the St. Croix River bridge project, which connects Wisconsin and Minnesota.
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