President-Elect Joe Biden is choosing his cabinet, and anyone who knows Joe Biden, isn’t surprised at his picks.\u00a0\u00a0There are some simple principles that are driving Biden\u2019s selections and are likely to continue.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First, Biden is looking for competence. The folks he picked for his \u201cNational Security\u201d team aren\u2019t necessarily ideological. They are proven, competent, professionals in their fields. Tony Blinken, Biden\u2019s pick for Secretary of State, worked for Biden on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He also served on the National Security Council, was the Deputy National Security Advisor, the National Security Advisor to the Vice President (Biden), and was the Deputy Secretary of State. Sure he\u2019s mostly worked for Democrats, but more importantly, he knows foreign policy, knows the workings of the State Department, and knows Joe Biden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Many of his other selections are the same. Avril Haines will be the next Director of National Intelligence \u2013 the top administrator of the United States \u201cspy\u201d agencies. That job became controversial with the Trump appointment of John Ratcliffe, a Texas Congressman with little National Intelligence experience. Ratcliffe\u2019s prime qualification for the job seemed to be defending President Trump during the impeachment hearings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Haines, on the other hand, is the former Deputy Director of the CIA. Prior to that she was a legal counsel to the White House, the State Department, and to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. And she\u2019s not necessarily popular with more progressive Democrats. Haines was a key player in the development of the Obama \u201cdrone strike\u201d policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But she is competent, experienced, and knows Joe Biden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And what about John Kerry?\u00a0\u00a0Kerry, Secretary of State, Democratic candidate for President, US Senator from Massachusetts, is the new \u201cEnvironmental Czar\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0Biden created that crucial appointment to show his own commitment to improving the environment, a critical issue to the progressive Democrats.\u00a0\u00a0He appointed a \u201cprincipal\u201d level candidate, and elevated the job to cabinet and National Security Council status.\u00a0\u00a0John Kerry is not going to be \u201cshuffled aside\u201d by anyone, not in the White House, and not in the world.\u00a0\u00a0And he knows Joe Biden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And Janet Yellen, the first woman to be the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, will be the first woman to be Secretary of the Treasury. She is a career economist, having held several positions with Federal Reserve banks alternating with professorships at major universities. And she is considered a \u201cprogressive\u201d in the economic world, more concerned about unemployment than inflation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So what happened to using the other Senators who ran for the Democratic candidacy for President? What about Sanders and Warren, Klobuchar and Booker? The first factor to consider is the makeup of the Senate itself. Right now, there are 50 Republicans and 46 Democrats and two Independents who organize with the Democrats. Two Senate seats are up for grabs still, the runoff seats in Georgia. That January 5th<\/sup> election will determine which political party controls the Senate. Should the Democrats win both it will create a 50-50 Senate, with the new Vice President, Kamala Harris, breaking the tie for the Democrats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Joe Biden isn\u2019t going to pull anyone out of the Senate that could alter that possible balance. Sanders is from Vermont and the governor there is a Republican. Warren is from Massachusetts, and believe it or not, the governor there is a Republican as well. Normally, the Governor of the state can appoint an interim Senator until a special election is held. Republican governors will appoint Republicans: Sanders and Warren aren\u2019t going anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The same is true about Sherrod Brown. Ohio\u2019s Senator is an obvious candidate for Secretary of Labor. As Ohio\u2019s only statewide elected Democrat, Brown is unlikely to accept any Biden appointment. Republican Governor Mike DeWine would love to appoint a Republican to that Senate seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Does that mean that the progressive wing of the Democratic Party won\u2019t get any Cabinet level appointments? <\/p>\n\n\n\n There are still \u201cdomestic\u201d Cabinet level jobs to be filled: Labor, Commerce, Interior, Energy and others. And, of course, there is the Attorney General\u2019s position. There will be other opportunities for more \u201cprogressive\u201d Democrats to make their mark. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But several things are clear at least from these first appointments.\u00a0\u00a0Biden is living up to his campaign pledge of a Cabinet that \u201clooks\u201d like America:\u00a0\u00a0men and women, Black, White and Hispanic.\u00a0\u00a0But there are two even more critical factors in Biden\u2019s first appointments.\u00a0\u00a0Joe Biden knows and trusts them.\u00a0\u00a0And they are experienced and competent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was \u201cNo Drama Obama\u201d. Joe Biden wants that too: an Administration with quiet, competent leadership. That\u2019ll be a change.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Progressive Demands<\/h3>\n\n\n\n