the biden transition

UPDATE 1/7/21 9:09PM: Since this post was published, Biden has named Gov. Gina Raimondo (D-RI) to the Secretary of Commerce post and Mayor Martin Walsh (D-MA) to the Dept. of Labor. Thus, completing his cabinet.

The American People have spoken. The electoral college has spoken. Congress and the Senate have spoken. Joe Biden of Delaware and Kamala Harris of California will be inaugurated as president and vice president, respectively, on January 20th.

The transition process has been like no other in American history. Donald Trump and his supporters have spread misinformation and lies these past few months. When Biden was projected to win the election on November 7th, it was not until almost 20 days later when the official transition had begun. This was due to Trump-Appointee, Emily Murphy, not acknowledging the win until November 23rd.

Biden was quick to create a COVID-19 Task Force and Climate Task force which will be his biggest priorities during his term, or so we think. Biden also began forming his cabinet, which is diverse and qualified. And no one is part of his family. A true shock, I know.

During this transition, Trump supporters had still claimed fraud and a rigged election. Biden addressed the nation and assured that he will be inaugurated because, that is how democracy works.

With Pentagon briefings halted, a delayed start, the coup, this transition has been like no other in American history. Biden and his team have continued their work through it all filling White house Staff positions and cabinet spots, they near the end of their transition very soon.

His cabinet is composed of familiar faces such as Merrick Garland, Deb Haaland (D-NM) , Pete Buttigieg, and Marcia Fudge (D-OH). Many of the nominees are more than qualified however, certain nominees have made some do a double take.

Former South Bend Mayor as Transportation Secretary? What? Pete was an excellent mayor, no doubt. But, his lack of experience is what cost him the Democratic nomination. I am sure he will do well, but I am sure that there could have been others who would fit the job just a but more. Pete deserved a cabinet position but maybe something like Veterans Affairs or UN Ambassador would fit his expertise a bit more.

Another pick raising questions is Marica Fudge (D-OH) in HUD. Marcia, a congresswoman from Ohio, attempted to become House speaker back in 2019. She failed. This nomination strikes me as a diversity pick, who Fudge herself criticized only diversity of African Americans in the HUD or labor dept. "As this country becomes more and more diverse, we're going to have to stop looking at only certain agencies as those that people like me fit in. You know, it's always 'we want to put the Black person in Labor or HUD,'" But Biden did it anyways. Marcia oversees the House subcommittee of Agriculture, so why not her to lead the department? Frankly, I would have loved to see her fill the spot. The HUD needs major reconstruction and someone who will dedicate themselves to fixing it. Similar to Pete, she did serve as mayor for 8 years but, even that will not be enough for the agency during the times when they need help the most. She has reassured her duty to the dept. in public and committed herself to it, despite the clear notion she does not seem to know what her focus will be. I feel that this is one of Biden's worst choices, and she could have better filled a different position.

Tom Vilsack, former Iowa governor and Agriculture Secretary, will return to his Obama administration post and reprise his role. He already filed the role for 8 years, why must he return? He has been met with criticism over the return. This furthers the idea of Biden pushing too much to be like Obama. This is not 2008, we are in a crisis of our democracy and fighting COVID-19. He needs to step it up, honestly. This is probably the worst pick, yet.

And finally, Susan Rice. She will lead in a position for Domestic Policy council. Susan, former UN ambassador, is not very liked amongst many. Some describe her as "The Rot of the Obama Administration", so why did Biden pick her? I think it lies in his idea to "raise" and "revitalize" the policy. She is a hard worker and will serve Biden faithfully. But, if she is disliked, why did he pick her? My fear here is not in her doing her job, but her painting Biden in a way that does not represent his values. Nonetheless, she will do her job and lead by example.

Biden still has two outstanding Cabinet positions, which are Commerce and Labor. He also has several Cabinet Level officials to name in the next 13 days. If the House and Senate democrat majority wasn't so slim, I am sure we would have seen Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT) among others included. That just did not happen.

With the coup that occurred on January 6th, 2021 on the date of the joint session of Congress and the house, it shows us what we are in for come the 20th. There will be unrest, there will be disagreements, but there will be a man in office who will put his difference aside to step up and lead the American people when they need it most.