White House taps former Wake schools and NCDOT leader Tony Tata for Pentagon position
This article was originally published April 23, 2020. It was updated on June 10, 2020, when President Trump said he intended to nominate Tata as Undersecretary of Defense for Policy.
Tony Tata, whose varied career included leading the Wake County school system and the North Carolina Department of Transportation, was officially nominated for a top job at the Pentagon by President Donald Trump on Wednesday.
His selection to become the Defense Department’s undersecretary for policy was first reported in late April by Bloomberg and Politico.
Tata, a retired Army brigadier general, is the author of several action thrillers and is a frequent commentator on Fox News.
The Senate must confirm his appointment. In addition to his work in North Carolina, Tata also was the chief operating officer of Washington, D.C. public schools and president of KaylaTek, which works with government contractors.
Tata abruptly resigned as N.C. secretary of transportation in July 2015, citing the stresses of his job, the demands of his family and his success writing military action books. He had contemplated challenging former Congressman Walter Jones in a Republican primary, but dropped the idea when it became public, saying he had more work to do at the transportation department. He resigned a month later.
Tata had led NCDOT for 2 1/2 years under Republican Gov. Pat McCrory. Among his accomplishment was launching a new, data-driven system for planning construction projects, reaching a compromise with environmentalists that cleared the way for the long-delayed replacement of the Bonner Bridge on the Outer Banks and a new system to allow North Carolinians to renew their driver’s licenses online.
Tata’s tenure as Wake school superintendent
His time as superintendent of Wake County schools was more acrimonious. Republicans who controlled the Wake County School Board favored hiring him in December 2010, but the two Democrats on the board did not, and partisan differences clouded his tenure.
The board asked Tata to develop a new school assignment plan that critics contended would lead to resegregation of Wake schools by race. After Democrats gained control of the board, they ordered a new assignment plan in the summer of 2012 that took into account school diversity.
About that same time, the district enacted a new transportation plan designed to save money that used fewer buses and resulted in longer trips for students. When parents complained, Tata took responsibility and promised to make improvements.
When district staff released the new assignment plan in September 2012, Democrats on the school board complained that it didn’t do enough to prevent low-performing students from being concentrated in certain schools. That same month, the board voted to fire Tata.
Four months later, McCrory named him transportation secretary.
Tata’s military career, controversy
Tata’s leadership roles in North Carolina followed a 28-year career with the Army that included planning the 82nd Airborne Division’s invasion of Haiti to dislodge a military government there in 1994 and serving as deputy commanding general of the 10th Mountain Division in Afghanistan in 2006 and 2007.
Tata announced his retirement in 2008, after the Army had determined he had committed adultery with “at least two” women during his career, according to an investigation by The News & Observer. But after the retirement took effect in 2009, he received the Army’s Distinguished Service Medal. He also received the Bronze Star, according to the White House announcement.
After leaving NCDOT, Tata formed a leadership consulting firm and became a frequent commentator on Fox News, where he consistently praises Trump and his military and foreign policies.
If confirmed, Tata would replace John Rood, who resigned at Trump’s request in February after a little more than two years as the Pentagon’s top policy officer.
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 1:41 PM with the headline "White House taps former Wake schools and NCDOT leader Tony Tata for Pentagon position."
