Sen. Joechin said Friday that he opposes the nomination of Neera Tandon as budget director for President Biden because of his derogatory tweets, but Biden says he will not pull her nomination.
Biden told reporters that when he returned to Washington from a trip to Michigan, “no” he would not withdraw Tandon’s nomination, even though he could now be rejected in an equally divided Senate.
Manchin (DW.V) cited Tandon’s confrontational tweets toward Republican and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt), while he served as president of the Democratic Party-Alliance Center for American Progress.
“I have carefully reviewed the public statements and tweets of Neera Tandon that were directed personally to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle from Senator Sanders to Senator McConnell and others,” Manchin said.
“I believe that his biased statements will have a toxic and damaging effect on the important working relationship between members of Congress and the next director of management and budget. For this reason, I cannot support his nomination.
Conservative Democrat Manchin, seen as an important swing vote on controversial issues, said, “We must take meaningful steps to end the political divisions and laxities that erode our politics.”
Tandon now needs Republican support to pass the Senate, but has ousted many conservative lawmakers with personal insults.
But Biden was hopeful of Tandon’s candidacy on Friday, telling reporters “I think we are going to find the vote and confirm it”.
Tandon recently deleted more than 1,000 of his tweets attacking GOP senators, but also canceled the 2016 Sanders presidential bid as Russia’s choice against the party’s founding favorite Hillary Clinton.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) reminded him this month, “You wrote that Susan Collins is the ‘worst’, Tom Cotton is a fraud, the vampire has more heart than Ted Cruz, whom you called the leader McConnell. Said ‘Moscow Mitch’. And Voldemort. “
Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) Quipped, “You called Sen. Sanders everything but an ignorant slut.”
If this is confirmed, Tanden would hold a powerful position in the federal bureaucracy to implement Biden’s policies. Under former President Donald Trump, the Budget Office directed agencies to confuse New York City, Portland and Seattle for federal grants to tolerate rising crime or violent protest.
Tandon is scheduled to confirm the Senate Budget Committee for a hearing on Wednesday. This month’s hearing was already confirmed before a Senate Finance Committee headed by Sanders.
In addition to his mean tweet, Sanders, a self-styled socialist, said he is concerned about soliciting Tandon millions of dollars in corporate donations to the Center for American Progress.
White House press secretary Jane Saki said on Friday evening that “Neera Tandon is an accomplished policy expert, who will be an outstanding budget director and we work to confirm her next week for committee votes and through engagement with both parties.” Continue to do. “
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