Fast-food executive Andrew Puzder issued a short statement abandoning the effort, saying he was “honoured to have been considered by President Donald Trump to lead the Department of Labor.”
White House spokesman Sean Spicer declined to comment on possible replacements but said late Wednesday that the White House had seen the writing on the wall.
“We know how to count,” he said.
Puzder’s nomination became part of a streak of contentious confirmation battles and haphazard White House actions, including a botched rollout of Trump’s executive order on refugees and the ouster of national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Senator Lamar Alexander, who would have chaired Puzder’s confirmation hearing on Thursday, issued a terse statement saying the nominee would have made an “excellent” labour secretary, but “I respect his decision” to quit pursuing the post. Puzder spokesman George Thompson said his boss was a victim of “an unprecedented smear campaign”.
What troubled majority Republicans most of all was Puzder’s acknowledgement that he had not paid taxes on the housekeeper until after Trump nominated him to the Cabinet post-December 9 — five years after he had fired the worker.
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