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<\/a>In this Sept. 17, 2008, file photo, Labor Secretary-designate Alexander Acosta speaks in Miami. Alan Diaz AP<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n
by James Rosen
\nmcclatchydc.com<\/p>\n
Alexander Acosta on Wednesday defended the 2007 plea deal he approved as the top federal prosecutor in Miami with Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in a child-sex case.<\/p>\n
At his Senate confirmation hearing to be President Donald Trump\u2019s labor secretary, Acosta pushed back at questions from 2016 Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine of Virginia about the plea deal that enabled Epstein to serve just one year in county jail.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy cut a non-prosecution deal despite your staff saying you shouldn\u2019t?\u201d Kaine asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not accurate,\u201d Acosta responded, disputing reports that in cutting the plea deal with Epstein, he rejected the advice of his senior lawyers when he served as U.S. attorney for Southern Florida.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a broadly held decision,\u201d Acosta said.<\/p>\n
The exchange was one of the more feisty moments in an otherwise relatively smooth hearing that Democrats and Republicans alike say will lead to easy confirmation for Trump\u2019s second choice to lead the Labor Department.<\/p>\n
Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Miami, a fellow Cuban-American, introduced Acosta to the Senate Labor Committee.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is a brilliant legal mind, someone with deep knowledge of labor issues, and a proven leader,\u201d Rubio said.<\/p>\n
Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, like Rubio a 2016 Republican presidential candidate, said he and Acosta had bonded over the years as the sons of Cuban-American refugees.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlex is a surprisingly good poker player and not nearly as good of a squash player,\u201d Cruz said to laughter.<\/p>\n
The Senate in bipartisan votes previously confirmed Acosta for three positions: the prosecutor\u2019s post in Miami, a senior Justice Department job and what became an eight-month stint on the National Labor Relations Board. And labor unions have already told<\/a> their allies on the Hill that Acosta is a better choice than Trump\u2019s first pick California fast food executive Andy Puzder.<\/p>\n Acosta, now dean of Florida International University\u2019s law school, said he took an unusually strong position in controversial Epstein case by interceding as a federal prosecutor after a grand jury in Palm Beach County had recommended weak charges.<\/p>\n \u201cThe grand jury recommended a single count of solicitation not involving minors,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cThat would have resulted in zero jail time, zero registration as a sexual offender and zero restitution for the victims in this case.\u201d<\/p>\n Instead, Acosta said, he elevated the case to the level of federal prosecution.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was highly unusual where a U.S. attorney becomes involved in a matter that has already gone to the grand jury at the state level,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cWe decided that Mr. Epstein should plead guilty to two years (in jail), register as a sexual offender, and concede liability so the victims should get restitution in this matter.\u201d<\/p>\n Acosta, now 48, suggested that some of the allegations in the 52-page indictment of Epstein would have been difficult to prove in a trial.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is pretty typical in a prosecution for a draft indictment to be written,\u201d he said. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that the draft indictment is filed because it doesn\u2019t necessarily mean the draft considers the underlying strength of the case.\u201d<\/p>\n Acosta also defended his decision not to require the specifics of the plea deal or underlying charges to be made public. They become public in an ongoing lawsuit filed in 2015.<\/p>\n Acosta, however, expressed some misgivings about keeping the deal private.<\/p>\n \u201cSomething that I think has changed over time is trust of government,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cThere was a time when keeping something confidential was less of an issue, but the public expectation today is that things be very public.\u201d<\/p>\n As a result of the decline in trust in government, he added, \u201coften a very positive outcome can become a negative outcome not because of a change in the underlying substance, but because of something not being public, it is looked at with suspicion.\u201d<\/p>\n On other issues at the confirmation hearing, Acosta engaged in a long and contentious exchange with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, over his commitment to protect workers from the health risks of inhaling dust containing crystalline silica.<\/p>\n The Labor Department\u2019s Occupational Safety and Health Administration last year proposed two regulations that would restrict the use of crystalline silica and require contractors to increase protections for their workers.<\/p>\n When inhaled, silica dust can cause cancer and respiratory illness. It is a chemical compound often released from the drilling and cutting of brick, stone and concrete on construction sites or during home remodeling projects.<\/p>\n \u201cEither you\u2019re going to stand up for 150 million American workers, including people being poisoned by silica, or you\u2019re not,\u201d Warren said.<\/p>\n Acosta said that, if confirmed to head the Labor Department, he would first have to review all regulations under a recent executive order from Trump that directed the heads of major federal agencies to eliminate or modify unnecessarily costly or burdensome rules.<\/p>\n \u201cThe point I\u2019m trying to make is the president has directed each Cabinet officer to review all rules and to make determinations if any rules should be revised,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cSo based on that executive action, I cannot make a commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n That hedge prompted a sharp retort from Warren.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re telling me you can\u2019t say we ought to not take out rules that (if eliminated) will cause people to die,\u201d Warren said.<\/p>\n Despite grilling Acosta, Warren said he was a marked improvement over Puzder, who withdrew from consideration in the face of multiple controversies.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll be honest \u2013 I\u2019m glad it\u2019s not his first choice Andrew Puzder sitting here today,\u201d Warren said.<\/p>\n In another contentious exchange, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state cited a 2008 probe by the Justice Department Inspector General of allegations that the DOJ civil rights division considered job applicants\u2019 political views while Acosta held a top post there.<\/p>\n \u201cStaff under your supervision broke federal law by systematically discriminating against individuals based on their political beliefs,\u201d Murray, the committee\u2019s top Democrat, said. \u201cYour staff referred to conservatives as \u2018real Americans\u2019 and called liberals commies and pinkos.\u201d<\/p>\n Acosta said such characterizations had been made mainly by one individual, identified in the report as Bradley Schlozman, but he apologized.<\/p>\n \u201cThat conduct should not have happened,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cIt happened on my watch. That language should have been used. And I deeply regret it.\u201d<\/p>\n As labor secretary, Acosta said, he would strictly prohibit such behavior.<\/p>\n \u201cPolitical views in the hiring of career attorneys and staff should not be used,\u201d Acosta told the panel. \u201cIf I am asked to do that, I would not allow it.\u201d<\/p>\n Several Democratic senators asked Acosta whether he would be able to withstand political pressure from Trump or his top White House aides.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been in public service for the better part of my career,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cI\u2019ve seen pressure. I don\u2019t for a second believe that senior officials would or should bow to inappropriate pressure. We work for the president. He is our boss. So all cabinet officials \u2026 will ultimately follow his direction unless we feel that we can\u2019t. And if we can\u2019t, then we resign.\u201d<\/p>\n Democrats and Republicans alike also asked Acosta whether he would push back against Trump\u2019s proposed 21 percent cut in the current $13 billion budget of the Labor Department.<\/p>\n Acosta sidestepped the question.<\/p>\n \u201cCongress will have the final say on the ultimate budget, but dollars are going to be scarce,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Pressed by Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, Acosta said he would be unlikely to impose across-the-board cuts in the department.<\/p>\n Instead, Acosta said, he would seek data to determine which programs had produced good outcomes and which ones had been less successful.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to go through these programs and compile the data because for a lot of these programs, I believe the rate of return on taxpayer dollars is quite significant and would pay for itself very readily in money saved and taxes paid by the fact that individuals have jobs,\u201d Acosta said. \u201cSo I readily embrace that as part of the job. If confirmed, I certainly am going to speak up and advocate.\u201d<\/p>\n Acosta, who would be the first Hispanic member of Trump\u2019s Cabinet, was also noncommittal about federal rules on overtime pay and other key issues<\/a> facing workers.<\/p>\n