Biden Nominees Begin Senate Confirmation Hearings
President-elect Joe Biden is nominating new people to his cabinet as he prepares to serve as the next President of the United States. The Senate has five hearings for key officials on January 19th. The nominations are: Retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin to serve as Secretary of Defense, Janet Yellen to serve as Secretary of the Treasury, Alejandro Mayorkas to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security, Antony Blinken to serve as Secretary of State, and Avril Haines to serve as Director of National Intelligence.
Yellen appeared before the Senate Finance Committee for her confirmation hearing on the morning of January 19th. During the hearing, Yellen said, “The most important thing in my view we can do today to put us on a path to fiscal sustainability is to defeat the pandemic; to provide relief to American people; and then make long-term investments that will help the economy grow.”
If confirmed, Gen. Lloyd Austin would be the first black individual to serve as Secretary of Defense in the U.S. He would need both chambers of Congress to pass a waiver that would allow him to serve in that capacity after leaving the military over seven years ago. On this, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said, “Civilian control of the military is a bedrock principle in our country since its founding [but] I will consider his nomination independently on the merits.”
The Director of National Intelligence pick, Haines, is likely to be scrutinized in the Senate for working as a consultant with Palantir Technologies Inc., a major government contractor. She has also been criticized for her work during the Obama administration, where she was named responsible for civilian deaths while overseeing the drone program.
National security was a major priority for the Senators during Haines’ confirmation hearing, given the events that transpired at the Capitol on January 6th. When asked by Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM) how she would handle the threat posed by QAnon to the United States, Haines said she would work with the FBI and the intelligence community in order to combat the threat.
The Secretary of Homeland Security nominee, Mayorkas, faced questions about how he would handle domestic terrorism, like that which occurred on January 6th at the Capitol.
Mayorkas was questioned by Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) on how he would handle border security and immigration. Mayorkas responded that we would “modernize our ports of entry to facilitate the lawful flow of cargo and people that add to the prosperity of our economy.”
On Tuesday, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) announced that he would block the swift confirmation of Mayorkas, which will delay the confirmation process.
The need to confirm cabinet members comes while President-elect Biden is pushing for a massive COVID-19 relief package and maximum security in D.C. prior to the inauguration. The Biden team is also keeping a few political appointees who were appointed during the Trump administration, including the U.S. ambassador to Russia, John Sullivan, who Biden believes is necessary since the role he serves should not be left vacant.
