Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States, perhaps, during the most testing times, as he faces the three-fold challenge- pandemic situation, crumbling economy, and political unrest.
On one hand, Biden is largely being looked up to by a significant portion of the Democratic voter base as well as progressive groups as he picks a diverse cabinet to deliver upon his earlier promise of it reflecting the United States’ diverse nature.
On the other hand, he will have to face the political turmoil surrounding the recent Georgia runoffs, and finally, the elephant in the room – the protestors breaking into Capitol Hill last week and the impeachment of former President Donald Trump – have already garnered enough steam and squalor even before Biden has entered the office.
While not exactly receiving a grand welcome, Joe Biden’s cabinet, nonetheless, looks promising at the moment. The last Democratic president Barack Obama had in his cabinet seven women as well as a black secretary. Biden’s cabinet, from his picks so far, will look something like this:
1.
Kamala Harris (Vice President) – Kamala Harris’
election as the new Vice President has been a ceiling-breaker, to say the
least. Being the first woman, first black, as well the first South Asian VP in
the White House after an inspirational election run, eyes will certainly remain
on Harris to see how she plays her part in helping set the course of the US
through the next four years as Biden’s second-in-command. The former Attorney
General of California and only the second black woman to have been elected as a
US Senator in 2016, Harris having a background in the criminal justice system
would arguably be having an impact in the currently unstable political scenario
in the US.
2.
Antony Blinken (Secretary of State) – Having
served in the Obama administration as the deputy secretary of state from 2015
to 2017, Blinken has been a close confidant for Joe Biden who elected him as
the Secretary of State on January 23 alongside other members of his national
security team. The coming back of Blinken into the administration might hint
towards the multilateralism seen during the Obama – the idea that even though
US can take action on its own around the world, it rarely should – can possibly
make a come back in the White House.
3.
Janet Yellen (Secretary of Treasury) – The
former Federal Reserve chair will be the first person to head the Treasury, the
central bank, and the White House Council of Economic Advisors, the three most
influential economic positions in the United States at the same time. With
incumbent President Donald Trump replacing her as the head of the central bank
in 2018, Yellen is set to return and already has expressed her desire to use
fiscal measures to implement economic recovery.
4.
Lloyd Austin (Secretary of Defense) – Biden
announced a report published on The Atlantic on December 8, 2020 that Lloyd
Austin, who has previously overseen the US forces in the Middle East under
president Obama, would be his Defense Secretary. Austin retired from the Army
in 2016 and would need a waiver from the US Congress in order to nullify the
seven-year waiting period before he can take up the job.
5.
Tom Vilsack (Secretary of Agriculture) – Vilsack
led the US Department of Agriculture under the Obama administration and has been
brought back to the task by Biden. Iowa’ Governor from 1999 to 2007, Vilsack
worked in the Biden campaign as an advisor on rural issues. The return of the
Iowa-native to the designation can be a cause of celebration for Midwestern
states, who supply the country’s major share of food grains such as corn, wheat
and the like.
6.
Xavier Becerra (Secretary of Health and Human
Services) – On December 7, Biden named California attorney general Xavier
Becerra the Health and Human Services Secretary under his administration. A
12-time Congressman who played an influential part in passing the Affordable
Care Act in Congress, he, if elected, is expected to be tasked with
reorganising the department for pandemic response amidst the chaos that 2020
saw erupting between public health officials and officials appointed by
President Donald Trump.
7.
Alejandro Mayorkas (Secretary of Homeland
Security) – As per Joe Biden’s announcement on January 23, Alejandro Mayorkas,
the deputy secretary of the homeland security under President Obama, will be
heading the department of Homeland Security, becoming the first Latino and the
first immigrant to do so. As the director of US Citizenship and Immigration
Services under Obama, Mayorkas led the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) program, a policy Biden has so far talked about restoring under his
presidency.
8.
Marcia Fudge (Housing and Urban Development
Secretary) – A Representative from Ohio, Marcia Fudge has served in the House
of Representatives since 2008. Prior to being elected to Congress, she was the
Mayor of Warrensville Heights, a Cleveland suburb. If successfully appointed,
Fudge would be the second black woman to head the Department of Housing and
Urban Development which relates to Federal policymaking with regard to housing.
9.
Deb Haaland (Secretary of the Interior) – Democratic
Congresswoman from New Mexico, Deb Haaland will be Biden’s pick for the
Interior Secretary, as per the latter’s announcement on December 17. Haaland
would become the first Native American cabinet secretary as well as the first
to oversee the department, with her jurisdiction including federally-owned
natural resources and tribal lands.
10.
Marty Walsh (Secretary of Labour) – Walsh has
previously served as the chief of the Boston Trade Council, a conglomerate of
construction unions, with his nomination being supported by two of the biggest
affiliates of the American Federation of Labour and Congress of Industrial
Organisations (AFL-CIO).
11.
Gina Raimondo (Secretary of Commerce) – Rhode
Island Governor Gina Raimondo, as per a report by New York Times, has been
nominated to lead the Department of Commerce – a key economic position in a
government agency which has under its ambit operations as widely spread as
technology reg ulation, the census, promotion of industry in the US, and the
national Oceanic and clim+ate-change related policymaking through National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
12.
Denis McDonough (Secretary of Veterans Affairs)
– White House Chief of Staff during the second term of former president Barack
Obama, McDonough was nominated by Biden to lead the Veterans Affairs Department
on December 10. McDonough served his early career helping the House Committee
on Foreign Affairs. However, a significant disadvantage he might face in the
Department that has put to trouble both the parties in past years, could be him
not having served in the armed forces.
13.
Merrick Garland (Attorney General) – Garland,
whose nomination was blocked by Republican Mitch McConnell in 2015, had his day
on January 7, as he was formally sworn in by president-elect Joe Biden as the
Attorney General. Bound to head the Justice Department, Garland, currently a
judge on the US Court of appeals for the District of Columbia circuit, would be
leading the beleaguered Justice department after events such as unsubstantiated
election fraud claims and a mob attack in the Capitol Hill took place late into
2020 and early 2021.
14.
Jennifer Granholm (Secretary of Energy) – Having
served as the first female Michigan Governor from 2003 to 2011, Jennifer
Granholm is set to take on the role of Secretary of Energy in the Joe Biden
cabinet. She has presumably had prior working experience with Biden, as in 2009
– when the latter operated as Vice President under president Barack Obama, she
had worked with him on the bailout of automobile manufacturers during the
recession period. Her experience can turn out to be a major plus point, as
Biden proceeds towards implementing more and more green energy alternatives to
conventional sources of power.
15.
Miguel Cardona (Secretary of Education) – Connecticut’s
top education official, Miguel Cardona was tapped to lead the Education
department on December 22 by Joe Biden. A staunch supporter of in-school curriculum
during the pandemic, Cardona would presumably be working towards fulfilling
Biden’s promise of sending kids back to school within his first 100 days.
16.
Pete Buttigieg (Secretary of Transportation) – One
of Joe Biden’s rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination, Buttigieg is
the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana and was picked by Biden on December 16
to lead the Transportation Department. In case of a confirmation, Buttigieg
would be the first person openly representing the LGBTQIA+ community in the
parliament. He could also be leading the implementation of an increase in
infrastructure spending, including electric vehicles and high-speed rail
connectivity.
