Labor Secretary Alex Acosta is resigning
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Labor Secretary Alex Acosta is out.
Acosta will step down by the end of next week, President Trump announced Friday. Trump and Acosta, who spoke with reporters about the exit, said it was Acosta's decision; Acosta said "I do not think it is right or fair" to draw focus to himself amid the prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein, reports Bloomberg. "I thought the right thing was to step aside."
The Labor Secretary has drawn scrutiny for his handling of Epstein's plea deal over a decade ago — Epstein was convicted of sexually abusing underage girls, and critics say Acosta played a major role as a Florida prosecutor in giving him a relatively light sentence for the crime. At a press conference this week, Acosta defended his handling of the case, including his decision to negotiate a non-prosecution agreement without keeping the victims informed, which a federal judge said was a violation of the law. Over the weekend, Epstein was arrested on new sex trafficking charges.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Though Acosta said earlier this week that he believes he handled the case appropriately, Trump was reportedly not pleased with his performance in the press conference and lost faith in his ability to move past the controversy.
While his resignation may be a surprise to some, at least Fox News' Andrew Napolitano can say "I told you so."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
-
The problem with diagnosing profound autismThe Explainer Experts are reconsidering the idea of autism as a spectrum, which could impact diagnoses and policy making for the condition
-
What to know before filing your own taxes for the first timethe explainer Tackle this financial milestone with confidence
-
The biggest box office flops of the 21st centuryin depth Unnecessary remakes and turgid, expensive CGI-fests highlight this list of these most notorious box-office losers
-
Judge blocks Hegseth from punishing Kelly over videoSpeed Read Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed for the senator to be demoted over a video in which he reminds military officials they should refuse illegal orders
-
Trump’s EPA kills legal basis for federal climate policySpeed Read The government’s authority to regulate several planet-warming pollutants has been repealed
-
House votes to end Trump’s Canada tariffsSpeed Read Six Republicans joined with Democrats to repeal the president’s tariffs
-
Bondi, Democrats clash over Epstein in hearingSpeed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi ignored survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and demanded that Democrats apologize to Trump
-
El Paso airspace closure tied to FAA-Pentagon standoffSpeed Read The closure in the Texas border city stemmed from disagreements between the Federal Aviation Administration and Pentagon officials over drone-related tests
-
Judge blocks Trump suit for Michigan voter rollsSpeed Read A Trump-appointed federal judge rejected the administration’s demand for voters’ personal data
-
US to send 200 troops to Nigeria to train armySpeed Read Trump has accused the West African government of failing to protect Christians from terrorist attacks
-
Grand jury rejects charging 6 Democrats for ‘orders’ videoSpeed Read The jury refused to indict Democratic lawmakers for a video in which they urged military members to resist illegal orders
