Alexander Acosta

Alexander Acosta
Official portrait, 2017
27th United States Secretary of Labor
In office
April 28, 2017 – July 19, 2019
PresidentDonald Trump
DeputyPatrick Pizzella
Preceded byTom Perez
Succeeded byEugene Scalia
Dean of the Florida International University College of Law
In office
July 1, 2009 – April 28, 2017
Preceded byLeonard Strickman
Succeeded byAntony Page
United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida
In office
June 11, 2005 – June 5, 2009
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Barack Obama
Preceded byMarcos Jiménez
Succeeded byWifredo A. Ferrer
United States Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division
In office
August 22, 2003 – June 11, 2005
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Preceded byBradley Schlozman (acting)
Succeeded byWan J. Kim
Member of the National Labor Relations Board
In office
December 17, 2002 – August 21, 2003
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Preceded byWilliam Cowen
Succeeded byRonald Meisburg
Personal details
Born
Rene Alexander Acosta

(1969-01-16) January 16, 1969 (age 55)
Miami, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseJan Williams
EducationHarvard University (BA, JD)

Rene Alexander Acosta (born January 16, 1969)[1] is an American attorney and politician, who served as the 27th United States Secretary of Labor from 2017 to 2019. President Donald Trump nominated Acosta to be Labor Secretary on February 16, 2017, and he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 27, 2017.

A member of the Republican Party, he was appointed by President George W. Bush to the National Labor Relations Board, and later served as the assistant attorney general for civil rights and the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida. He is a former dean of Florida International University College of Law. He has twice been named on the ‘50 most important Hispanics’ list by Hispanic Business Magazine.

In 2007–2008, as U.S. attorney, Acosta approved a plea deal that allowed child-trafficking ring-leader Jeffrey Epstein to plead guilty to a single state charge of solicitation, in exchange for a federal non-prosecution agreement.[2] After Epstein's arrest in July 2019 on sex trafficking charges, Acosta faced renewed and harsher criticism for his role in the 2008 non-prosecution agreement, as well as criticism and calls for his resignation; he resigned on July 19 and was replaced by Eugene Scalia.

  1. ^ Weaver, Jay; Yanez, Luisa (May 28, 2009). "U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta to lead FIU's law school". The Miami Herald.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).