Posted on 07/12/2019 6:50:27 AM PDT by yesthatjallen
Alexander Acosta will step down as Labor secretary amid mounting scrutiny over his role in negotiating a plea deal for financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Acosta announced his resignation Friday, saying that he phoned President Trump that morning to tell him he was stepping aside because he does not want his handling of the Epstein plea agreement to consume the administration.
Acosta's support on Capitol Hill began to erode in the wake of new sex trafficking charges against Epstein in New York City. Numerous Democrats in the House and Senate had called for Acosta to resign or be fired from the Trump administration.
The situation became untenable for President Trump as his allies viewed the Labor secretary as a political liability.
Prosecutors alleged that Epstein, 66, engaged in sex acts with girls as young as 14 and had young women recruit other girls to be part of an alleged sex trafficking operation. Epstein has denied any wrongdoing.
The charges brought fresh attention to Acosta’s role as a U.S. attorney who oversaw a favorable plea deal for the wealthy financier years earlier in Florida.
The 2008 agreement allowed Epstein, a hedge fund manager, to avoid federal prosecution and a possible life sentence. Instead, Epstein pleaded guilty to state prostitution charges and served roughly a year in prison.
Acosta has defended the arrangement, arguing it ensured Epstein would spend at least some time in jail and would require him to register as a sex offender.
A federal judge ruled in February that prosecutors in the case violated the Crime Victims Rights Act by failing to inform Epstein’s victims about the plea deal. The handling of the matter is under review by the Department of Justice's Office of Professional Responsibility.
Acosta was confirmed in April 2017 by a 60-38 vote and was the lone Latino member of Trump’s Cabinet. He was the president’s second choice to serve as Labor secretary after Andy Puzder withdrew from consideration in the face of ethics scandals.
Acosta was reportedly a source of frustration for some in the White House as he was slow to enact regulatory reforms sought by Trump and acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney.
And this is why we keep losing.
When will we learn, Real Americans?
Get a spine, fight back, or keep getting crushed. Your choice.
We need a Labor Secretary to fight back against H-1B abuse (HR1044) and the illegal invasion
Exactly
Labor Secretaries are replaceable. The important thing at this juncture is appointing the right person for the job. Often times these should be considered great opportunities even though they are unfortunate on many levels.
Stand up for those who enable pedophiles!
Good.
He knows he has to defend himself now. It shouldn’t get in the way of what Trump is trying to accomplish.
We knew this was coming but it wil change nothing.
Exactly, bowing to fake pressure only makes things worse. Effing stoopid.
What’s interesting to me is Acosta didn’t rat out anybody in the Bush DOJ. I doubt he made the plea decision on his own with no influence from above.
Acosta is a chess piece folks!! Think about it - no one brought up Epstein when he was confirmed.
A federal judge ruled in February that prosecutors in the case violated the Crime Victims Rights Act by failing to inform Epstein’s victims about the plea deal.
...
That’s the worst part of it right there.
Quick - name the last ten labor secretaries.
Republicans need to stop running away when they are unjustly attacked. The Democrsts don’t do it — that’s why the governor of Virginia survived a nonsense accusation of racism.
Kaine did but that was it:
ACOSTA: At the end of the day, based on the evidence, professionals within a prosecutors office decide that a plea that guarantees that someone goes to jail, that guarantees that someone register generally, and that guarantees other outcomes is a good thing. And so...
KAINE: And — and was that a consensus decision in your office?
ACOSTA: It was a broadly held decision, yes.
No surprise.
This still leaves one Acosta too many in the White House (when they let him in, that is)
Partial Credit: Name any two of the last ten labor secretaries.
Republicans = Ask and thou shall receive.
Democrats = Deny and GFY. There is a big difference between the parties, one bends the other stays stiff. Keep the enemy always on the defensive, and win.
Let’s hope Javanka doesn’t have their sticky fingers in the choice.
Maybe Acosta wasn’t part of the Epstein stink, but maybe he was. So now the stink is out and chuck Schumer has to explain his Epstein donations.
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