Quick Facts
Biography
Andrew Franklin "Andy" Puzder (born July 11, 1950) is the chief executive of CKE Restaurants, the parent company of Hardee's and Carl's Jr., a position he has held since September 2000. He was previously a lawyer in private practice, where he was active in opposing abortion.
On December 8, 2016, Puzder was named as President-elect Donald Trump's planned nominee for United States Secretary of Labor.
Early life and education
Puzder was born on July 11, 1950, in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Winifred M. (Franklin) and Andrew Frank Puzder. He grew up in Russell Township. He attended Kent State University and dropped out in 1970 following the Kent State shootings. According to Puzder, he then "spent the next three years attending concerts and marching on Washington." While living in Cleveland Heights, Puzder worked in sales at a guitar studio and attended Cleveland State University, receiving a BA in history in 1975. He then attended Washington University School of Law where he was editor of the Washington University Law Quarterly, receiving his JD in 1978.
Career
Early legal career
From 1978 to 1983, Puzder was an associate at the law offices of St. Louis attorney Morris Shenker, practicing corporate law. In 1984 he moved to the Stolar Partnership and worked with trial attorney Charles A. Seigel. He also served as a trial lawyer in St. Louis until 1991.
Opposition to legalized abortion
During the 1980s and early 1990s, Puzder was considered Missouri's leading anti-abortion lawyer and was active in the anti-abortion group Lawyers for Life. In 1984, Puzder and another lawyer wrote an article for the Stetson Law Journal proposing a Missouri law that would define life as beginning at conception in the broad context of contract or property law. Puzder reasoned that if fetuses were recognized as having rights in other contexts, it would establish a foundation for challenging Roe v. Wade later on.
Puzder authored Missouri House Bill 1596, an abortion law prohibiting the use of state money for abortions and declaring that life begins at conception. Following a challenge, the Supreme Court in 1989 upheld the law in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services. The watershed decision opened the door for new state-level restrictions on abortion. Following the Webster decision, Puzder was a founding member of the Common Ground Network for Life and Choice.
In July 1989, Puzder was appointed chair of the Task Force for Mothers and Unborn Children by Missouri Governor John Ashcroft. After The Riverfront Times published an article detailing allegations that he had abused his wife, he offered up his resignation to the Governor. The allegations were later retracted, and Puzder was not asked to step down, but left the task force a few months later.
CKE Restaurants
Puzder met Carl Karcher, the founder of the Carl's Jr. quick-service restaurant chain, while practicing law in St. Louis. Karcher was embroiled in serious financial difficulties, in part related to an investigation into insider trading by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC filed suit saying that Karcher had told several relatives to sell their stock ahead of a poor earnings report. In July 1989, Karcher paid $664,000 to settle the case. Puzder organized a transaction in which Karcher would sell a stake in his company to William P. Foley, the Chairman and CEO of Fidelity National Financial. In 1991, Karcher asked Puzder to move to Orange County, California and become his personal attorney and Pudzer did so. Puzder has been credited with resolving Karcher's financial dilemma, allowing Karcher to avoid bankruptcy and retain a significant ownership interest in the company he founded, CKE Restaurants, Inc. (CKE). Puzder was a partner in the Costa Mesa-based law firm Lewis, D'Amato, Brisbois & Bisgaard from September 1991 to March 1994 and a shareholder in Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth from March 1994 to 1995.
In 1993, Foley became Chairman and CEO of CKE Restaurants and Karcher became Chairman Emeritus. In January 1995, Puzder became Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Fidelity, managing one of the largest corporate legal departments in the country until June 2000. Puzder also worked with Foley to create Santa Barbara Restaurant Group, a conglomerate of restaurant chains that was purchased by CKE in 2002. Puzder served as the company's CEO.
In 1997, Puzder was also named Executive Vice President and General Counsel for CKE and CKE purchased the Hardee's quick-service restaurant brand. The transaction burdened CKE with $700 million in debt. The company underperformed and its market capitalization dropped to about $200,000. Faced with serious financial and operational issues, CKE's Board of Directors named Puzder as president and CEO of Hardee's Food Systems in June 2000 and named him president and CEO of CKE Restaurants, Inc. in September of that year. Puzder is credited with turning around both the Hardee's brand and CKE, allowing the company to survive, become financially secure and return to growth.
Sales to Apollo and Roark Capital
In July 2010, Apollo Global Management, private equity firm, took CKE private in a transaction valued at $694 million. In December 2013, Roark Capital Group purchased CKE and retained CKE's management team including Puzder, who remains as CEO.
Awards and honors in the food service industry
PR News and CommCore Consulting named Puzder its 2005 Spokesperson of the Year for his work in representing the Carl's Jr. and Hardee's brands on television and radio. Puzder earned the Golden Chain Award in 2008 from Nation's Restaurant News, in honor of his accomplishments and career achievements as a multi-unit foodservice executive. In 2009, Cleveland State University named Puzder Distinguished Alumni of the Year. In 2010, the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association awarded Puzder with the Food Service Operator of the Year Silver Plate Award in recognition of outstanding service and dedication to the foodservice industry. In 2012, Washington University School of Law named Puzder Distinguished Alumni of the Year.
Media appearances
Puzder is a frequent author on economic and legal issues in periodicals such as The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Real Clear Politics, CNBC online, National Review, The Hill, Politico, and the Orange County Register. He has been a guest on business news programs including Your World with Neil Cavuto, Varney & Co., Mornings with Maria, The O'Reilly Factor with Bill O'Reilly, Mad Money with Jim Cramer, Fast Money, Power Lunch, Lou Dobbs Tonight, and Squawk on the Street. He has co-hosted both Varney & Co. and Squawk on the Street. He is also a frequent speaker at colleges, universities, and other venues on economic issues and the impact of government regulations on corporations.
In 2010, Puzder and David Newton co-wrote the book Job Creation: How It Really Works and Why Government Doesn't Understand It. In the book, Puzder and Newton sharply criticize trade unions and argue in favor of deregulation, tax cuts, government spending cuts, and an increase in domestic oil production.
Political involvement
Presidential campaign of Mitt Romney
In 2011, Puzder contributed to Believe in America, Mitt Romney's Plan for Jobs and Economic Growth. He was an Economic Adviser and a spokesman for the Romney campaign for President. Puzder also served as a Delegate to the 2012 Republican National Convention and as the Chairman of the Platform Committee's Sub-Committee on the Economy, Job Creation, and the Debt.
Presidential campaign of Donald Trump
In 2016, Puzder raised money for the Trump campaign for President, and with his wife contributed $332,000 to Trump's campaign, joint fundraising committees, and the Republican National Committee, according to the Federal Election Commission. He was a Trump Presidential Trustee, Victory Finance Chair for California, spokesperson, and Senior Economic Advisor to the campaign. Puzder also served as a Delegate to the 2016 Republican National Convention and as the Chairman of the Platform Committee's "Restoring the American Dream" Sub-Committee on the economy, job creation, and the debt.
In December 2016, Puzder was selected by President-elect Donald Trump as his planned nominee for Secretary of Labor of the United States.
Political views
Puzder has been critical of substantially raising the federal minimum wage, arguing that a $15 per hour minimum wage would increase costs for consumers and increase automation, leading to fewer jobs.
In an interview published by Fox Business in May 2016, Puzder said: "There are solutions to this problem, and increasing the minimum wage is not the best solution. If we are going to increase the minimum wage at all, we’ve got to keep a lower minimum wage for entry-level workers, or these people are just going to be shut out of the workforce….The Congressional Budget Office came out with a report last year that said you could raise the minimum wage to about $9 without much impact on jobs, and you probably could do that". He said that protesters who are demanding a $15/hour minimum wage "should really think about what they’re doing".
Puzder opposed a never-enacted rule that would have required time and a half overtime pay to certain workers when they worked more than 40 hours per week. In an editorial published by Forbes Magazine in 2016, Puzder wrote: "This new rule will simply add to the extensive regulatory maze the Obama Administration has imposed on employers, forcing many to offset increased labor expense by cutting costs elsewhere. In practice, this means reduced opportunities, bonuses, benefits, perks and promotions".
Puzder supports repealing the Affordable Care Act. In an opinion editorial published in the Wall Street Journal in October 2016, Puzder referred to the law as the "Non-Affordable Care Act" and stated that "the burden these increased health-care costs place on working and middle-class Americans is inexcusable". He stated that rising premiums have created a "government-mandated restaurant recession" because people have less money to spend dining out.
He has been critical of policies requiring paid sick leave for federal contractors.
Speaking to Business Insider in 2016, Puzder said that increased automation could be a welcome development because machines were "always polite, they always upsell, they never take a vacation, they never show up late, there's never a slip-and-fall or an age, sex, or race discrimination case."
He backed comprehensive immigration reform in 2013. At that time, Puzder stated "If we had immigration reform and were able to hire these people who really want to work, we’d have a more diverse, incentivized and productive workforce, you’d really reinforce this idea that the United States is the land of opportunity, the land of entrepreneurial vision — and that could use some reinforcing.” In 2013, Puzder said "Immigrants appreciate what America offers. They are not taking jobs from Americans, because there are not sufficient Americans applying for jobs. Maybe they feel they have better options."
Personal life
Puzder was married to Lisa Henning from 1973 until their divorce in 1987. They had two children. Puzder married Deanna L. Descher in 1987. He has six children and six grandchildren. He lives in Franklin, Tennessee with his wife. Puzder is Roman Catholic.
Affiliations
Puzder is a member of:
- The National Advisory Board of Washington University School of Law
- The American Enterprise Institute
- The Job Creators Network, a national business advocacy organization
In 2013, Puzder was elected as a director of the International Franchise Association.
