Here’s who may be working closely with the president-elect over the next four years
After a very intense 2020 election, Democrat Joe Biden is currently the projected president-elect. Throughout November, Biden announced the members of his Cabinet and senior staff should he move into the White House come Jan. 20, 2021. Here is who will join vice president-elect Kamala Harris on team Biden.
Chief of Staff: Ron Klain
Ron Klain was Biden’s chief of staff when Biden was Barack Obama’s vice president. It is no surprise he remains with Biden coming into a new presidential term. Biden is hoping that Klain will help him battle the coronavirus pandemic and restore the country’s economy. Klain has experience in battling pandemics, as he combatted ebola in 2014.
Secretary of State: Antony Blinken
Antony Blinken has a large resume. Before he was Biden’s secretary of state, he was Obama’s deputy secretary of state. However, he also has a strong relationship with Biden himself, as he served as his aide on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Blinken is also a firm believer of international alliances, particularly ones with Europe. Blinken shared the following statement with POLITICO:
“Put simply, the world is safer for the American people when we have friends, partners and allies,” Blinken said in 2016. He has described Europe as, “a vital partner” and has dismissed the Trump administration’s plans to remove U.S. troops from Germany as, “foolish, it’s spiteful, and it’s a strategic loser. It weakens NATO, it helps Vladimir Putin and it harms Germany, our most important ally in Europe.”
Department of Homeland Security secretary: Alejandro Mayorkas
Alejandro Mayorkas will make history by being the first Latino and the first immigrant to run Homeland Security. Similar to Klain and Blinken, Mayorkas worked during the Obama Administration as a former deputy secretary at the DHS. The Hill reports that President Donald Trump spent his term shaping the Department of Homeland Security into a militarized border patrol. They also reported that Biden seems to have picked the immigrant as the head of the DHS to undo what Trump has done and focus less on the border situation.
UN Ambassador: Linda Thomas-Greenfield
After working for decades for the State Department, Linda Thomas-Greenfield was released by the Trump Administration. Now she is set to return as the United States ambassador to the United Nations. The New York Times reports one of the ways the Trump Administration has severed ties with the United Nations by withdrawing from the World Health Organization. Thomas-Greenfield will be picking up where the Trump Administration left off, but the direction she will go in remains unclear.
National Security Adviser: Jake Sullivan
Jake Sullivan spent many years serving the Democratic party. First, he was director of policy planning during the Obama Administration. During his time in the administration he served under the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He also was an adviser to Biden in his second term as vice president. At just 44 years old, Sullivan will be the second youngest national security adviser after McGeorge Bundy took the position at 42 years old. Sullivan laid his intentions out to the Minnesota Star Tribune.
“A stronger economy for working people, huge new investments in research and development, owning our future in key industries like clean energy and advanced manufacturing, making sure our democracy is robust and strong and inclusive and diverse, with institutions rooted in deep constitutional principles,” Sullivan said.
Climate Envoy: John Kerry
John Kerry, Obama’s former secretary of state, will be battling climate change in his new position. Kerry is no stranger to tackling climate change. A notable career point for Kerry was when he negotiated the Paris agreement. The agreement centered around combating the negative effects of climate change and was adopted in 2015 by almost 200 countries. Kerry will now bring his experience into the 2021-24 term.
Director of National Intelligence: Avril Haines
This is yet another first for Avril Haines. First, she was the first woman to be Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Now, if approved, she will be the first woman to hold the position of director of national intelligence. Like many of Biden’s picks, Haines served in the Obama Administration as the Deputy National Security Advisor.
Secretary of the Treasury: Janet Yellen
Another historical first comes with Janet Yellen potentially being the first female Secretary of the Treasury. She is no stranger to democratic politics, as she served as Bill Clinton’s head of Council of Economic Advisers and Obama’s chairperson in the Federal Reserve. Yellen was the first woman to serve in the latter position. The Washington Post writes that unemployment decreased more in Yellen’s tenure than any other Fed chair in nearly 80 years. Her experience was enough for the projected president-elect to select her for this position.
Office of Management and Budget Director: Neera Tanden
When it comes to experience, Tanden has plenty, as she served in the Obama and Clinton administrations. However, the CEO of the Center for American Progress has led to some controversy. The Guardian reports that Tanden deleted over a thousand of her tweets, many of which criticized senators. Now those same senators have the chance to vote on Tanden’s approval to office. Whether or not her words will prohibit her from joining Biden’s team is to be determined.
Senior Advisor to the President: Cedric Richmond
Richmond served as a U.S. Representative from 2011 till the present, representing Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District. Recently, Richmond was on the side of impeaching Donald Trump after Trump was accused of abuse of power. He shared a statement that was reported by The Advocate:
“This is not a rush to judgment. It’s a rush to justice,” Richmond said. “The longer we wait the more time we allow this president to do irreparable harm to our country and our democracy.”
Press Secretary: Jen Psaki
Psaki served as the White House Communications Director from 2015-2017. She was also a spokesperson for the Department of State and served in the Obama administration.
Deputy Chief of Staff: Jennifer O’Malley Dillon
Most recently, Dillon served as Biden’s campaign manager for his 2020 campaign. Dillon became the first woman to manage a winning campaign with Biden’s win this year. According to CNN, Dillon had no intention of taking a job after the campaign, but supposedly accepted the position due to the chance to make history. Despite never working in the White House, Dillon now joins a team of Obama and Clinton veterans in Biden’s administration.
None of these positions are officially confirmed until Biden is sworn into office on Jan. 20. After that, they must be approved by the Senate.