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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presidential appointments
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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Biden Pick for Pentagon Chief Clears Senate Hurdle
The Senate voted 69-27 Thursday to approve a waiver allowing retired Army General Lloyd Austin to serve as Joe Biden’s secretary of defense, putting him one step closer to confirmation despite not meeting the usual requirement of being out of the military seven years or longer.
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‘Mayor Pete’ Poised for Promotion to Transportation Secretary
The former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, could soon lead the beleaguered Department of Transportation as it faces challenges from a changing climate and a still-raging pandemic.
Read moreSuccession
Colorado sued the Trump administration Friday, claiming the Bureau of Land Management’s approval of a resource management plan is invalid because the bureau’s director — like many Trump appointees — assumed the position unlawfully because he wasn’t next in the line of succession.
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Judge Slams Feds Over Insistence Wolf Is Lawful Homeland Security Chief
Four federal judges and the Government Accountability Office have all found acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf’s occupation of the office is “the equivalent of a squatter in a rental building.”
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Senate Approves Trump’s Pick for California Federal Judge
Senators teed up the confirmation of Fernando Lazaro Allene-Rocha for a seat on the Central District of California bench Friday, by formally considering his nomination on the floor.
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Two Federal Judges Confirmed as Senators Scramble to Reach Funding Deals
The Senate voted Wednesday to confirm two federal judges nominated by President Donald Trump, continuing to fill judicial vacancies in the lame-duck session despite the urgency facing lawmakers as they hammer out virus relief and government funding packages.
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Biden Pick Would Be 1st Native American Leader at Interior
For the first time in the nation’s history, a Native American has been chosen to lead the department that oversees and manages America’s most cherished parks, waterways and tribal lands.
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Senate Confirms Two Federal Judges, Adding to Trump Judicial Legacy
The Senate confirmed another Trump appointee to the federal bench Wednesday in a final push to cement the lame-duck president’s reshaping of the judiciary.
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Senate Confirms Amy Coney Barrett Replacement on Seventh Circuit
The Senate on Tuesday approved Thomas Kirsch, 51-44, to serve on the Seventh Circuit, filling a vacancy left behind by Justice Amy Coney Barrett when she was elevated to the Supreme Court in October.
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Susan Rice Tapped for Biden Cabinet Post That Won’t Need Senate Nod
President-elect Joe Biden announced more members of his administration Thursday morning, including Susan Rice to lead the Domestic Policy Council and Denis McDonough for secretary of veterans affairs.
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Gen. Austin Would Be First Black US Defense Secretary, 3rd to Need a Waiver
Departing a tradition of selecting civilians to lead the Defense Department, President-elect Joe Biden asked Congress for a waiver Wednesday afternoon that would give the job to General Lloyd Austin III.
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Senate Keeps Seating Judges in Lame-Duck Session, Close to Approving Federal Claims Pick
The Senate is poised to put another Trump nominee on the federal bench as the president’s time in office draws to an end, agreeing to limit debate on his pick for the U.S. Federal Claims court in a 48-46 vote.
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Republicans Confirm More Trump Judges Amid Pandemic Relief Talks
Senate Republicans pressed ahead with confirming two of President Donald Trump’s nominees to the federal bench on Tuesday, as a partisan face-off over new coronavirus relief and a massive spending package continued.
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Trio Vying to Flesh Out Scraggly Election Commission Round Senate Bases
The Federal Election Commission could finally be on track to functionality as nominees for the agency tasked with rooting out campaign-finance fraud concluded a long-awaited confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
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Democrats Challenge Pick to Replace Barrett on Seventh Circuit
President Donald Trump’s nominee to fill the Seventh Circuit seat left empty by Justice Amy Coney Barrett faced sharp criticism Wednesday from Senate Democrats who warned against filling vacancies on the federal bench during the lame-duck period.
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‘Show Me Your Papers’ Opponents Swing at Illegal Appointment
Latching onto the unlawful appointment of key government posts, the ACLU took a second swing on Friday at a rule that fast-tracks the removal of undocumented immigrants.
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Feinstein Calls on GOP to Stop Seating Trump Judges in Lame Duck
Senator Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, urged Republicans on Thursday to stop processing President Donald Trump’s nominees for the federal bench during the lame-duck period.
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