Blumenauer mentions Downey as possible Secretary of Transportation

U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Portland) said Friday that he was not interested in becoming Secretary of Transportation in President-elect Barack Obama’s cabinet, but he did say that he thought Mort Downey would be a good fit for the job.

Downey served as deputy transportation secretary for both of President Bill Clinton’s terms, and was also an assistant secretary of transportation under President Jimmy Carter. He currently runs his own transportation consulting firm, Mort Downey Consulting, LLC, and is working on the Obama-Biden transition staff as a Department of Transportation Review team lead.

Blumenauer also said that there were many other qualified individuals from around the country that could serve well in the transportation secretary position.

“There’s an emerging cadre of folks from around the community,” he said, mentioning that Salt Lake City, Chicago, and the San Francisco Bay Area had undergone transportation overhauls.

As for why he was not interested in the job, Blumenauer said he was happy where he was.

“I have a day job I like,” he said. “I have no interest in not being able to come home to Portland.”