Trump Picks HBS Alum Elaine Chao for Transportation Secretary

Photo by Marquette University on Flickr/Creative Commons

President-Elect Donald Trump has reportedly selected Harvard Business School alum Elaine Chao as his pick for transportation secretary.

Chao is the first Asian-American woman to hold a Cabinet-level position, previously serving as head of the Department of Labor under President George W. Bush. Chao, who is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, visited Trump Tower in New York City and discussed transportation with the president-elect, according to his transition team.

If confirmed, Chao wouldn’t be the first transportation secretary with Congressional entanglements—Elizabeth Dole held the position in the ’80s as her husband Sen. Bob Dole served as majority leader.

The Chao family are major donors to Harvard, including a $40 million gift in 2012. Chao and McConnell joined Harvard President Drew Faust, Gov. Charlie Baker, and Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey for the dedication of Harvard Business School’s Ruth Mulan Chu Chao Center, named after her late mother.

“The hardships that they endured,” Chao said of her parents who fled China after the country’s civil war before immigrating to the United States, “instilled in them a lifelong commitment to build bridges of understanding between people of different backgrounds and cultures.”