The announcements came at a news conference in Austin on Tuesday. Bush had said earlier that he wanted to settle on all 14 Cabinet nominees by the end of this week. Abraham was defeated in his November re-election bid by Democrat Debbie Stabenow. He had voiced interest in the transportation job, but was interviewed for the energy post after Bush settled on Mineta, the current Commerce secretary. He is ready to join us in seeking energy security for the United States.
National security depends on energy security.
I look forward to helping the president-elect effectively address these challenges in the days ahead. Abraham served one term in the Senate before losing his contest with Stabenow this past November. Prior to his six-year stint there, he worked as a deputy chief of staff to Vice President Dan Quayle when Bush's father, former President George Bush, occupied the White House. He also helped raise money for congressional Republicans in 1992 as an aide with the National Republican Congressional Committee. His flagship issue as a senator was not energy policy but immigration, and he spent much of his time there seeking to expand opportunities for legal immigrants to the United States.