WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) President-elect Joe Biden on Friday introduced the governor of Rhode Island, the mayor of Boston and a small-business advocate from California as the newest members of his economic team.
Labor secretary – Marty Walsh
Walsh became mayor of Boston in 2013, and is the chairman of Climate Mayors, a group of 470 mayors across the US. Walsh has previously served as a local official in the Laborers International Union of North America, and led the city s Building and Construction Trades Council for two years.
If confirmed, Walsh would be the first union member to serve as labor secretary in nearly half a century.
In the role, Walsh would head the Department of Labor, which is responsible for policies, projects, and laws involving unions and the workplace.
Walsh would take on the role at a time when the US is suffering under mass unemployment. The country lost 140,000 jobs in December alone.
The Biden administration’s stance on international trade will likely mark a significant shift away from President Donald Trump’s heavy-on-tariffs approach. Trump slapped tariffs on Chinese steel and other goods to punish Beijing for what the administration said were unfair currency practices and potential national security threats. Those moves were largely opposed by U.S. allies, including Canada.
Biden opposes Chinese tariffs and has promised to improve U.S. relationships with countries around the hemisphere and globe. But he hasn’t indicated that undoing the tariffs will be a top priority. Instead Biden has promised to oversee an aggressive “Buy American” campaign that would use federal funds to purchase $400 billion of U.S.-made goods and spend another $300 billion on new research and development from domestic technology firms.
Courtesy subject
As President-elect Joe Biden continues to fill out his cabinet, he s expected to pick Isabel Guzman for the top job at the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Guzman, a former deputy chief of staff at the SBA during the Obama administration, would replace Jovita Carranza as administrator. Under Obama s tenure, the role was elevated to cabinet level, a sign of the import of small businesses to the nation.
While
Inc. has yet to sit down with the incoming administrator directly, Guzman, a Latina, is widely considered to be up to the task of running an agency that has become increasingly vital for the health and wellness of the nation s millions of small businesses.
Boston mayor Walsh to be Biden’s labor secretary By: Associated Press January 8, 2021
10:46 am
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh talks on March 13 about the postponement of the Boston Marathon during a news conference in Boston. President-elect Joe Biden has selected Boston Mayor Marty Walsh as his labor secretary, choosing a former union worker who shares his Irish American background and working-class roots. The 53-year-old Walsh has served as the Democratic mayor of Boston since 2014. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
By DARLENE SUPERVILLE
Associated Press
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) President-elect Joe Biden plans to name Boston Mayor Marty Walsh as his new secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor.