Trump Critic Tapped to Lead Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus, a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, has been chosen to lead a key border agency.
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presidential appointments
Senate Quicksand Isn’t Sole Force Keeping Top DOJ Posts Open
Staffing of Department of Justice is moving at a glacial pace, with permanent leadership still lacking across the agency several months in.
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Biden Unveils Diverse First Round of Judicial Picks
Progressives are praising President Biden’s first slate of judicial nominees, many of which will break racial and gender barriers.
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Former California Attorney General Confirmed to HHS Post
Xavier Becerra will lead the Department of Health and Human Services after squeaking through his Senate confirmation in a 50-49 vote.
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Senate Confirms Biden Pick for Small Business Administration
In a largely bipartisan vote, the Senate confirmed Isabel Guzman to run the federal agency that provides support to small businesses and entrepreneurs.
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Senate Confirms Deb Haaland as Nation’s First Native American Cabinet Secretary
Congresswoman Deb Haaland was confirmed by the Senate Monday as the secretary of the Interior by a 51-40 vote, making her the first Native American to serve in a presidential cabinet.
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Merrick Garland Confirmed as Biden’s Attorney General
Senators confirmed the former D.C. Circuit judge to lead the Justice Department with a 70-30 vote.
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Confirmation of Vanita Gupta Runs Headlong Into GOP Hedge
President Biden’s nominee for associate attorney general faced a barrage of questions having less to do with her work as a litigator than her politics, past and present.
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Budget Nominee Tanden Withdraws Nomination Amid Opposition
President Joe Biden’s pick to head the Office of Management and Budget, Neera Tanden, has withdrawn her nomination after she faced opposition from key Democratic and Republican senators for her controversial tweets.
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Biden’s DOJ Picks Stir Controversy on Road to Confirmation
Three women are slated to serve top roles in the Department of Justice. Two of them have already faced conservative backlash.
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Empty Board Hampers Effort to Release Records on Civil Rights-Era Killings
No one has been appointed to a board that is supposed to facilitate the federal government’s release of records about civil rights-era cold cases. The students who helped write the law establishing the board hope a new administration will change that.
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Trump Appointees Make Up 28% of Active Judiciary, but Not for Long
As President Joe Biden closes out his first month in office, a large gap remains in his administration: dozens of open seats in federal and appellate courts across the country, with more to come in the next few months.
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Turkey’s Erdogan Describes Student Protesters as Terrorists
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has denounced student protesters as “terrorists” and vowed to crackdown on demonstrations opposing the appointment of a government loyalist to head Istanbul’s most prestigious university.
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Making History, Senate Confirms Biden Picks for Transportation, Homeland Security
The Senate continued its confirmation of President Joe Biden’s Cabinet picks Tuesday by approving Pete Buttigieg to serve as transportation secretary, while preparing to vote later in the day to confirm Alejandro Mayorkas to head the Department of Homeland Security.
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Agriculture Nominee Gets Warm Welcome at Senate Hearing
Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack is on his way to bipartisan confirmation returning him to America’s top agricultural job.
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Senate Tees Up Vote to Confirm Biden Pick for Homeland Security
The Senate continued to advance President Joe Biden’s Cabinet picks Thursday, approving a procedural motion for his Department of Homeland Security nominee while wrapping up a confirmation hearing for two others.
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Biden Cabinet Nominees at Energy, UN on Track for Approval
It is a bonanza of confirmation hearings for President Joe Biden’s Cabinet, including hearings vetting his pick to lead the Energy Department.
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New Secretary of State Has Been Here Before
Antony Blinken will enter his fourth White House administration under President Joe Biden, having previously served every previous commander in chief but Trump in some capacity since 1994.
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Yellen Becomes First Woman to Lead Treasury Department
After making history as the first woman to chair the Federal Reserve seven years ago, Janet Yellen broke another glass ceiling Monday when she was confirmed as the first female treasury secretary.
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Senate Confirms First Black Defense Secretary
President Joe Biden’s nominee for secretary of defense overwhelmingly won confirmation in the Senate on Friday, making retired Army General Lloyd Austin the first Black head of the Pentagon.
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