President-elect Joe Biden nominated his longtime rival Pete Buttigieg as Secretary of Transportation on Tuesday and intends to elect former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm as Secretary of Energy.
Buttigieg would be the first openly gay person to be confirmed by the Senate for a cabinet position. The 38-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, would also add a young dynamic to an incoming government that has until now been largely dominated by leaders with decades of experience in Washington.
Granholm, 61, served as Michigan attorney general from 1999 to 2003 and was Michigan’s first governor, a position she held for two terms, from 2003 to 2010. She supported Biden’s presidential candidacy and has criticized President Donald’s attempts. Trump to reverse the election results, accusing him of “poisoning democracy.”
His possible nomination was confirmed by two people who are familiar with the selection. They spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly prior to the president-elect’s announcement.
Biden has consistently announced his cabinet elections. He has already elected former adviser to former President Barack Obama, Tony Blinken, as secretary of state; retired Army General Lloyd Austin as his Secretary of Defense, and former Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen as his Secretary of the Treasury. He also elected former Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to return to that position during his administration and Representative Marcia Fudge to assume the post of Secretary for Housing and Human Development.
Buttigieg became a major figure in national politics when he was among those who challenged Biden for the Democratic Party presidential nomination this year.
However, his campaign failed to appeal to African-American voters who play a key role in Democratic politics. As the primaries moved to more diverse states like South Carolina, Buttigieg began to waver and quickly withdrew from the race. His endorsement of Biden led to an early unification of the party around his final candidate.
As for Granholm, as Secretary of Energy, she will be involved in carrying out Biden’s promised $ 2 trillion climate plan, considered the largest and most ambitious effort in the country to reduce emissions from the use of fossil fuels that are heating up. dangerously the Earth’s atmosphere.
Buttigieg’s election for Secretary of Transportation drew praise from LGBTQ rights groups, with one saying it was “a new milestone in the decades-long effort” for the community to have representation in the US government.
“His impact will reverberate far beyond the department he will lead,” added Annise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Institute.
Biden also plans to turn to Gina McCarthy, former director of the Environmental Protection Agency, to spearhead his ambitions for a massive, nationally coordinated campaign to combat climate change. His climate counterpart will be former Secretary of State John Kerry, who was previously chosen by Biden to be his climate envoy for national security issues.
___
Beaumont reported in Des Moines, Iowa.
– .
