Senate Democrats are working with the Biden administration to crank up the speed for confirmation of key diplomatic positions that have been blocked by a pair of Senate Republicans.
J. Scott Applewhite / AP fileWASHINGTON — Frustrated Senate Democrats are working with the Biden administration to crank up the speed for confirmation of key diplomatic positions thatWith more than 80 Biden State Department nominees awaiting confirmation and a paltry 15 confirmed so far, high-level vacancies are becoming more and more conspicuous asenters its eighth month in office.
Cruz for months has put a hold on all State Department nominees until the administration imposes certain sanctions over Russia’s building of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Hawley, in an even more sweeping demand, last week announced he’d hold up all State Department and Pentagon nominees until Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and national security adviser Jake Sullivan all resigned.
“This is not just an inside baseball question,” said Max Stier, CEO of the Partnership for Public Service. “These are the people that are actually supposed to be dealing with our most important challenges as a country, from the withdrawal from Afghanistan to getting out rental assistance people who are economically in trouble to dealing with the pandemic to climate change.”
Both potential 2024 presidential candidates, Hawley and Cruz have worked to beef up their foreign policy credentials while serving as vocal counterweights to Biden’s foreign policy agenda. “For our national security, I respectfully urge the Senate and this committee to move as swiftly as possible to consider and confirm all pending nominees and to address what is a significant disruption in our national security policymaking,” Blinken told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this month.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
U.S. House passes abortion rights bill, outlook poor in SenateThe U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation on Friday to protect abortion services against growing Republican-backed state restrictions, including a Texas law that imposes a near-total ban on abortion, but the bill is unlikely to pass the Senate.
Read more »
Pelosi may delay vote on Senate bipartisan infrastructure billHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., may not bring the bipartisan infrastructure bill to the House floor Monday as she previously committed to, she said Sunday. 'I'm never bringing to the floor a bill that doesn't have the votes,' Pelosi told ABC 'This Week' anchor George Stephanopoulos. 'You cannot choose the date,' Pelosi said.
Read more »
The Biden effect: GOP starts linking down-ballot Democrats to an increasingly unpopular presidentA new TV ad by a pro-GOP group that backs party candidates running in state legislative elections is going where Republicans have been hesitant to go until recent weeks: President Biden.
Read more »
Paul Gosar calls Arizona audit 'good start,' wants Trump-Biden rematch by year's endThe Arizona 'audit' has reaffirmed that Biden defeated Trump in Maricopa County, but GOP allies of the ex-president continue to push voter fraud claims.
Read more »
Democrats' criticisms of Biden are reminder of why GOP is a danger to democracyOpinion | Democrats' criticisms of Biden are actually a reminder of why the GOP is such a danger to our democracy. By MichaelGordonUS.
Read more »
Sham audit backfires on Arizona GOP, Biden won by a wider marginTrump had told people the Arizona audit 'could undo' the 2020 presidential election. That was bonkers at the time; it's much worse now.
Read more »