Labor Secretary Alex Acosta is resigning


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.
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
-
Florida aims to end all state vaccine requirements
Speed Read Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to cut vaccine access and install anti-vaccine activists at the FDA and CDC
-
US kills 11 on 'drug-carrying boat' off Venezuela
Speed Read Trump claimed those killed in the strike were 'positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists' shipping drugs to the US
-
Trump vows to send federal forces to Chicago, Baltimore
Speed Read The announcement followed a California judge ruling that Trump's LA troop deployment was illegal