Washington Rumors Grow Over LaHood’s Future at DOT

This story appears in the Jan. 14 print edition of Transport Topics.

A spate of pre-inaugural Cabinet announcements and a story in a Capitol Hill insider publication last week fed the Washington rumor mill’s speculation surrounding the future of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Fueling speculation of LaHood’s pending departure was a Jan. 9 story by The Hill newspaper that said he was not on a list circulated by the White House containing the names of President Obama’s new Cabinet members.

The Department of Transportation declined last week to confirm the accuracy of the report. A DOT spokesman told Transport Topics he “had nothing new” to say about whether LaHood would stay on during the president’s second term.

The White House did not respond by press time to a message requesting comment, nor did it respond to a request for a copy of the list.

In recent public statements and press interviews, LaHood has vacillated about his future plans.

As far back as October 2011, LaHood told TT and other media outlets that he planned to step down from his position if Obama was re-elected, but he had not told the president of his decision.

“He’s never asked me,” LaHood told TT after a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., adding: “This has been a great run. I’ve enjoyed it.”

LaHood had been a Republican member of the House of Representatives from Illinois before becoming DOT secretary.

At that time, LaHood quashed speculation that he might be resigning from the Cabinet to return to his home state to run for governor.

“I’ve going to finish this out, and then we’ll see what happens,” LaHood said. “I think I’ll have some wonderful opportunities, so we’ll see where it takes me.”

But this past October, LaHood hinted he was keeping the door open to a second Cabinet term, saying he planned to talk with the president about his future.

Last month, LaHood told the Peoria (Ill.) Journal Star that his discussion with the president would not come until after the new year started. However, LaHood said he had a conversation with the president about his future shortly after the election, the paper reported.

The renewed speculation about LaHood’s future last week came at a time that the administration confirmed plans for several Cabinet members to stay on for the second term, while one Cabinet member announced her resignation.

Attorney General Eric Holder, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki will continue to serve in their respective posts, the White House said.

On Jan. 10, Obama announced the nomination of his chief of staff, Jack Lew, to become Treasury Secretary.

In a related development on Jan. 9, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis announced her retirement.

“After much discussion with family and close friends, I have decided to begin a new future and return to the people and places I love and that have inspired and shaped my life,” Solis said in a statement.

Although not officially a member of the Cabinet, last month Lisa Jackson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, announced she will leave her post.

Before Obama offered LaHood the Cabinet post in 2009, LaHood had been a Republican congressman for 14 years.

LaHood said he jumped at the opportunity because he had always wanted to see what it was like on the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue — in the executive branch.