Chavez-DeRemer Walks Back PRO Act Support in Senate Hearing

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Members of a Senate committee grilled Labor Secretary-designate Lori Chavez-DeRemer on Feb. 19 about her past support of pro-union legislation, her position on raising the federal minimum wage and her willingness to disagree with President Donald Trump.

Democrats sought assurances during the nominee’s confirmation hearing that if confirmed, Chavez-DeRemer would protect private data held by the Department of Labor. Republican members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions asked if she still backed a bill that would have made it easier for workers to unionize.

Union leaders have described Chavez-DeRemer, a former Republican member of Congress from Oregon and former mayor of a small city on the edge of liberal-leaning Portland, as a friend of organized labor. But workers’ rights advocates questioned whether she would be able to uphold that reputation in an administration that has fired thousands of federal employees.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana who chairs the committee, opened the hearing by saying the Trump administration had an opportunity to enact a pro-American agenda. He said business…