The Biden cabinet is shaping up and making history.
Politics
President Joe Biden already made triple-history by selecting a Black and South Asian WOMAN in Kamala Harris to be his vice-president. However, Mr. Biden didn’t stop there. He vowed to select a cabinet that would look like America — and that’s exactly what he did.
In just his first week in office, the president saw the first African-American Secretary of Defense and the first female Secretary of the Treasury confirmed to the Biden cabinet.
Let’s take a look at those who have already been confirmed:
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ANTONY BLINKIN – Secretary of State
Mr. Blinken previously served in the Obama administration as the deputy secretary of state, assistant to the president, and principal deputy national security adviser. He also served as the national security adviser to then-Vice President Biden.
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JANET YELLEN – Secretary of the Treasury
Yellen made history as the first woman to chair the Federal Reserve and has now made history yet again as the first female Treasury Secretary. She previously served as the vice-chair of the board and president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. She was also chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers from 1997 to 1999.
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GEN. LLOYD AUSTIN – Secretary of Defense
The appointment of Gen. Austin to lead the US Pentagon was so important, President Biden had to request a special waiver from Congress to allow the general to bypass the 7 years removed from military service requirement to become the (traditionally civilian) Defense Secretary. As the first African-American to lead the defense department, Gen. Austin previously served as commander of the US Central Command.
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AVRIL HAINES – National Intelligence Director
Ms. Haines is making history as the first woman to serve as director of US national intelligence. Previously, she served as assistant to the president and principal deputy national security adviser under President Obama. She was also once the deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
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Those who are yet to be confirmed are:
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MERRICK GARLAND – Attorney General
Judge Garland was originally selected by President Obama to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia on the US Supreme Court. However, Republicans blocked him from even having a hearing, claiming his February of 2016 nomination was too close to the presidential election. Now, his selection as Attorney General of the United States is almost poetic justice.
With a resume as long as your arm, Judge Garland currently serves as a federal judge on the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit.
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ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS – Secretary of Homeland Security
Mr. Mayorkas was once deputy secretary of Homeland Security during the Obama administration and also served as director of the DHS’s United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. He helped implement the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, an executive action program under President Obama that protected young undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children from deportation.
If confirmed, Mr. Mayorkas would be the first Latino and the first immigrant to serve as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
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XAVIER BECERRA – Secretary of Health & Human Services
Mr. Becerra previously served 12 terms in Congress as a member of the US House of Representatives. He is the current Attorney General of California and is the first Latino to hold that office in the history of the state. If confirmed, Mr. Becerra would also be the first Latino to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
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MARCIA FUDGE – Secretary of Housing & Urban Development
Congresswoman Fudge has represented Ohio’s 11th Congressional District since 2008. She previously chaired the Congressional Black Caucus and also made history as the first woman and first African-American to be elected mayor of Warrensville Heights, Ohio.
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PETE BUTTIGIEG – Secretary of Transportation
Former South Bend, IN Mayor Pete Buttigieg, is the youngest member nominated for Biden’s Cabinet (38 years old) and is considered a rising star within the Democratic Party. If confirmed, Buttigieg would make history by being the first openly LGBTQ Cabinet secretary ever approved in the US.
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MIGUEL CARDONA – Secretary of Education
The one-time 4th-grade teacher who went on to become a principal is now the current Commissioner of Education in Connecticut. Being of Puerto Rican descent, Mr. Cardona would become one of the highest-profile Latinos in the Biden cabinet.
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DEB HAALAND – Secretary of the Interior
In 2018, Rep. Haaland made history when she was elected as one of the 2 first female Native Americans in Congress. If confirmed by the Senate, Ms. Haaland would be the first Native American Cabinet secretary in US history.
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LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD (UN Ambassador)
Ms. Thomas-Greenfield is a 35-year career diplomat who has agreed to abandon retirement and return to public service to work with the Biden administration. Under President Obama, she served as assistant secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs, director-general of the Foreign Service, and director of human resources. She was also ambassador to Liberia and held diplomatic posts in Switzerland, Pakistan, Kenya, The Gambia, Nigeria, and Jamaica.
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Other Biden cabinet members awaiting confirmation include Tom Vilsack (Secretary of Agriculture), Gina Raimondo (Secretary of Commerce), Marty Walsh (Secretary of Labor), Jennifer Granholm (Secretary of Energy), Denis McDonough (Secretary of Veterans Affairs), Michael Regan (EPA Administrator), Neera Tanden (Office of Management & Budget Director), Katherine Tai (US Trade Representative), Isabel Guzman (Small Business Administrator), Cecilia Rouse (Council of Economic Advisors Chair), John Kerry (Special Envoy for Climate), Eric Lander (Presidential Science Adviser), and Dr. Vivek Murthy as Surgeon General.
WEST WING OFFICES:
President Joe Biden already made triple-history by selecting a Black and South Asian WOMAN in Kamala Harris to be his vice-president. However, Mr. Biden didn’t stop there. He vowed to select a cabinet that would look like America — and that’s exactly what he did. […] – DJ
Yep. “That’s exactly what he did.”
In short- the difference between the make-up of the prior administration and the make-up of this administration is the difference between a weak but powerful old white guy who’s terrified of a changing American -and- a confident and powerful old white man who is Not. Joe Biden is the right man to lead this nation at this time.