WASHINGTON — Sean Duffy took the oath of office on Wednesday, and was sworn in by Vice President JD Vance as the nation’s Transportation Secretary.


What You Need To Know

  • Former Wisconsin Congressman Sean Duffy was sworn as U.S. Transportation Secretary on Wednesday

  • He now takes command of a department with tens of thousands of employees

  • The Department of Transportation has the responsibility for overseeing the nation’s airlines, railroads, mass transit systems and interstate highways

  • Duffy has already directed his staff to rescind or replace tougher fuel efficiency standards imposed under President Joe Biden

Duffy represented western Wisconsin in the House of Representatives from 2011 to 2019 before resigning to take care of his children. 

Vice President JD Vance swears in Sean Duffy as Secretary of Transportation as his wife Rachel Campos-Duffy holds the Bible, in the Indian Treaty Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

In a short speech, Duffy thanked President Donald Trump for trusting him with the job and promised to work on traffic congestion, airspace efficiency and across-the-board innovation.

“Whether it's with drones or autonomous vehicles or eVTOLs — or to say, Ubers in the air, another term for them — but we are in a race to beat the rest of the world and to make sure we have rules in place that are going to make America the best home for this innovation is critical.”

The Department of Transportation has nearly 50,000 employees and oversees the nation’s airlines, railroads, mass transit systems and interstate highways. Trump has frozen hiring at federal agencies, something Duffy joked about during the ceremony.

“47,000 employees strong,” Duffy said. “I guess that's not going to grow at all with the new executive order, but it's a great team, and I look forward to working with them.” 

Vance said he’s thrilled to have Duffy in the role, saying the new Transportation Secretary will make sure tax dollars are spent wisely.

“I think that I'm not being too mean to our predecessors in saying that we spent a lot of money in the last administration, but didn't get a lot out of it,” Vance said. “And I think we're going to have a Secretary of Transportation here who is a much better steward of taxpayer dollars.”

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, left, speaks after being sworn in by Vice President JD Vance in the Indian Treaty Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Duffy has already made his first move as Transportation Secretary. He directed his staff to rescind or replace tougher fuel efficiency standards imposed under President Joe Biden to improve the environment. Duffy said the rollback will make motor vehicles more affordable.

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