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As he makes his first round of Cabinet announcements, President-elect Joe Biden acknowledges the potentially difficult road he will have to take to confirm his candidates through a Senate that could still be controlled by Republicans .
Asked Monday by reporters in the pool if he expects Republicans to put up major roadblocks to his Cabinet candidates – who need Senate approval to be confirmed – Biden responded with a laugh: “You you laugh at me.”
BIDEN UNVEILS PICKS FOR KEY CABINET POSITIONS
The current balance of power for the next Senate following this month’s election is 50 Republicans and 48 Democrats. This means Democrats must win both second-round elections in Georgia on January 5 to make it a 50-50 Senate.
If that happens, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris would be the deciding vote, giving her party a tiny majority in the House. Otherwise, GOP Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky will remain the majority leader in the Senate.
The president-elect earlier on Monday announced a number of key cabinet appointments, including Antony Blinken as Secretary of State, Alejandro Mayorkas as Homeland Security Secretary, Avril Haines to be the first woman to lead the community Intelligence and former Secretary of State John Kerry as Presidential Climate Envoy.
Blinken and Mayorkas were confirmed to positions of assistant cabinet secretary under President Obama’s administration with little support from the GOP.
Biden was also asked why he chose to announce the national security candidates first. His brief response – “because it’s national security”.
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris attend a meeting at the Queen Theater on Monday, November 23, 2020 in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster)
The president-elect spoke as he arrived at his makeshift transitional seat in his hometown of Wilmington, Del., To team up with Harris for a virtual meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors.
KERRY WANTS TO TREAT CLIMATE CHANGE AS AN ‘URGENT THREAT TO NATIONAL SECURITY’
Harris spoke first, telling the mayors, “You are all where the rubber meets the road. You are in the field. You walk the streets of America where people recognize you. … It is you who take the heat every day.
Biden thanked the mayors, telling them, “You’ve all been on the front lines from the start. As we head into this dark winter … we want you to know that we are here for you.
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