Democrats and housing advocates have little idea what to expect from Scott Turner, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development in his second administration.
Turner, best known for being a former NFL player, hasn’t done any high-profile media interviews since Trump announced in November he would be his pick for the role. As other would-be cabinet picks have attracted plenty of buzz on Capitol Hill, Turner visited the Capitol in December, meeting with about a dozen senators but attracting far less attention. Turner’s relatively quiet public presence has left Democratic members of Congress and housing advocates struggling to figure out what to expect from him.
“I don’t know him. I have never heard his name mentioned previously. I have a vague recollection of him playing football,” said Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Democrat who serves on the House Financial Services Housing and Insurance subcommittee. “I would just like to know what his theology of housing is.”