Alex Acosta, the US labor secretary, is facing renewed calls to resign after a lenient 2008 plea deal he negotiated with Jeffrey Epstein came under scrutiny. Epstein, a billionaire financier, was charged on Monday with operating a sex trafficking ring involving girls as young as 14. Acosta, then Miami's top federal prosecutor, granted Epstein a non-prosecution agreement that shielded him from federal charges.
Senior Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have urged Acosta to step down. Schumer said on the Senate floor: 'I am calling on Secretary Acosta to resign. It is now impossible for anyone to have confidence in Secretary Acosta’s ability to lead the Department of Labor.' Pelosi tweeted that Acosta 'engaged in an unconscionable agreement w/ Jeffrey Epstein kept secret from courageous, young victims preventing them from seeking justice.'
Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has led calls for an investigation into Acosta's role, told the Guardian: 'A big part of his job is protecting workers and children from exploitation, yet he has demonstrated that he has utter disregard for victims and instead his priority is to protect sexual predators.' She added that pressure is building within the congressional oversight committee to call Acosta for questioning.
Under the 2008 deal, Epstein pleaded guilty to two state charges that controversially labelled his victims as prostitutes, served 13 months in jail with work release, and was granted immunity for potential co-conspirators. The FBI's 53-page draft indictment was dropped. Epstein, 66, pleaded not guilty on Monday to sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking of minors in New York.
How Acosta weathers the storm may depend on President Donald Trump, who has remained silent since Epstein's arrest. In February, Trump called Acosta a 'fantastic labor secretary'. Senator Tim Kaine, who voted against Acosta's confirmation in 2017, tweeted: 'Acosta must go. He handed a sweetheart deal to a serial sexual predator.'
