Anthony Foxx is scheduled to be sworn in as the nation's 17th Secretary of Transportation. He stepped down from his old job as mayor of North Carolina's largest city on Monday.
Foxx called a special meeting of the Charlotte City Council to say goodbye to the city he has led for the past four years.
"Thank you for what you've given me," Foxx said.
"I've tried to give some measure of it back and I care deeply about the future of this place. I leave it to you in good hands and I hope I come back home and I see the evidence of the things we've been able to do together actually happening."
The U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed Foxx as transportation secretary last week.
Shortly after Foxx's remarks, council member Patsy Kinsey was voted in by her colleagues as the city's interim mayor to fill out Foxx's current term. Candidates are already lining up for a mayoral race in November.
