The Senate confirmed former Rep. Anthony D’Esposito to serve as inspector general for the Department of Labor late Thursday — as Democrats quietly speculate he might have his eye on a return to Congress.
D’Esposito, who flipped New York’s Nassau County-based 4th district in 2022 before narrowly losing to Rep. Lauren Gillen (D-NY) last year, was confirmed in a batch of 97 of President Trump’s picks in a 53-43 vote.
Trump had nominated D’Esposito to the role back in April, but a backlog in the Senate prevented him from officially clinching the watchdog role sooner.
“Honored to be confirmed as Inspector General of the United States Department of Labor with a clear mission: strong enforcement, real accountability, and protecting American workers and taxpayers,” D’Esposito said after getting confirmed.
“I’ll work shoulder-to-shoulder with career civilians and agents to root out fraud, waste, and abuse, combat labor and human trafficking, and enforce the law without fear or favor.”
Despite the initial headwinds Trump faced in getting his picks through the Senate, GOP leadership boasted that the president managed to move more of his people through the upper chamber than his predecessor did during his first year in office.
Republicans modified the rules for confirming sub-Cabinet-level positions in September after Democrats spent months bogging down the advancement of Trump’s picks with procedural hurdles.
“We began the year by confirming President Trump’s Cabinet faster than any Senate in modern history,” Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) said.
“And by week’s end, President Trump will have 417 nominees confirmed by the Senate this year. That’s far more than the 365 that Joe Biden had in his first year in office.”
In addition to D’Esposito, the batch of Trump’s picks that advanced through the Senate included James Murphy and Scott Mayer for the National Labor Relations Board, Tammy Bruce to serve as Deputy US ambassador to the United Nations and Brent Bozell to serve as US Ambassador to South Africa.
Privately, some Democrats are speculating that D’Esposito may run for Congress again and use his new Trump administration gig as a springboard.
“Long Islanders already rejected D’Esposito once, and they won’t hesitate to do so again,” Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Riya Vashi chided just ahead of his confirmation.
“They know exactly who he is: a self-serving, corrupt politician who spent his time in Congress siding with MAGA extremists and special interests instead of fighting for working families.”
Gillen similarly made sure to jab at her former bitter rival.
“Of course, he feels entitled to a taxpayer-funded job as a consolation prize,” she swiped. “He cannot be trusted to promote transparency and good governance.
“He is completely unqualified for this position: today’s confirmation falls far short of what the American people deserve from their public officials.”
