Tag Archives: Biden Cabinet

Axios reports: Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned Congress on Friday that “extraordinary measures” will be necessary as early as Jan. 14 unless Congress acts to raise or otherwise suspend the debt ceiling. President-elect Trump has voiced support to abolish the debt limit despite some of his supporters historically opposing action to raise the debt ceiling during Democratic administrations. The debt …

Axios reports: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is scheduled to undergo a medical procedure Friday and will be temporarily relinquish his duties, the Pentagon said. The announcement comes after criticism to the initial secrecy surrounding Austin’s two-week hospitalization earlier this year following complications from prostate cancer treatment. The non-surgical procedure is elective and a minimally invasive follow-up to a bladder issue …

USA Today reports: Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge will step down from her top post in the Biden administration this month, she announced Monday, saying that after decades of public service, she’s retiring and returning to Ohio. “It’s time to go home,’’ Fudge told USA TODAY in an exclusive interview. “I do believe strongly that I have done …

Axios reports: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was hospitalized again on Sunday — this time “to be seen for symptoms suggesting an emergent bladder issue,” the Pentagon announced. The Defense Department said Monday Austin will not travel to Brussels later this week for meetings on NATO and Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion. Officials with Walter Reed National Military Medical Center said …

“Today, at approximately 2:20 pm, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin Ill was transported by his security detail to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to be seen for symptoms suggesting an emergent bladder issue. The Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have been notified. Additionally, White House and Congressional notifications have occurred. …

The Hill reports: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin apologized Thursday for his secretive hospitalization in early January, admitting he “did not handle this right,” amid questions about his failure to notify administration officials of the hospital stay. Austin appeared in the Pentagon press briefing room for the first time since his hospitalization and answered questions from reporters about the scandal. “I …

Politico reports: Attorney General Merrick Garland will be out of commission this weekend due to back surgery and is going out of his way to make sure that there are no doubts about who will be in charge during his absence. The unusual, early announcement by the Biden administration’s top law enforcement officer is intended to avoid the storm of …

The Associated Press reports: The White House is laying out a new set of guidelines to ensure it will be informed any time a Cabinet head can’t carry out their job after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s secret hospitalization this month was kept for days from President Joe Biden and his top aides. The new guidelines include a half-dozen instructions for …

Reuters reports: White House National Security spokesman John Kirby on Sunday said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s doctors think he may need additional care. “We’ll see, you know, when he can be released, but obviously they still feel like he may need some additional care. Part of that is just physical therapy,” Kirby said. Kirby said “there is routine regular …

Axios reports: John Kerry, the U.S. special presidential envoy for climate, will leave the administration later this winter, and plans to help President Biden’s campaign, Axios has learned. Kerry, 80, thinks Biden’s reelection is the “single biggest” difference that can be made this year for climate progress at home and globally, a source close to the administration told Axios. Kerry …

CNN reports: President Joe Biden on Friday said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had a lapse in judgement by not notifying him of his hospitalization, but White House officials made a point in emphasizing Austin remains heavily involved in military decision making. Touring an Allentown, Pennsylvania-area coffee shop, Biden was asked by reporters whether Austin’s delay in informing him about his …

Bloomberg News reports: U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh is leaving the Biden administration, according to people familiar with the matter. He has been offered the job as executive director of the NHL Players’ Association, which represents professional hockey players in Canada and the US. Walsh is the first member of President Joe Biden’s Cabinet to step down. His exit …

Politico reports: Pete Buttigieg said Thursday that he’s planning on staying in his job as Transportation secretary, which he called “the best job in the federal government.” “I don’t have any plans to do any job besides the one I’ve got,” Buttigieg said in an interview with Punchbowl News on the two-year anniversary of his confirmation. He swatted aside questions …

The Washington Post reports: The number of attendees who have tested positive for the coronavirus after last weekend’s Gridiron dinner has risen to 67, organizers say, including Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack [photo], who became the third member of Biden’s Cabinet in attendance who was infected. The new figures, released Saturday evening by the organizers of the dinner, do not include …

The Washington Post reports: Housing Secretary Marcia L. Fudge on Tuesday moved to reinstate fair housing regulations that had been gutted under President Donald Trump, in one of the most tangible steps that the Biden administration has taken to address systemic racism. The effort comes less than three months after Biden signed executive orders aimed at increasing racial equity across …

Reuters reports: U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland will kicked off a two-day visit to Utah on Thursday where she will meet with tribes and political officials to discuss the potential restoration of two national monuments that were slashed in size by former President Donald Trump in order to open them to mining and drilling. The visit is the centerpiece of …

CNN reports: The Senate narrowly confirmed Xavier Becerra to be the Health and Human Services secretary on Thursday, giving the former California attorney general a crucial role in fighting the pandemic. Becerra, the son of Mexican immigrants, is the first Latino HHS secretary. The vote was 50 to 49. During the confirmation process, Becerra stressed his upbringing, his father’s recent …

ABC News reports: The Senate is poised to confirm Xavier Becerra as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Thursday despite nearly unanimous opposition from Republicans, who have tried to brand him as a radical and unqualified. Becerra, currently the attorney general of California, would be the first Latino to lead the department. If he is confirmed, Becerra …

NPR reports: Deb Haaland, a member of New Mexico’s Laguna Pueblo, has become the first Native American cabinet secretary in U.S. history. The Senate voted 51-40 Monday to confirm the Democratic Congresswoman to lead the Interior Department, an agency that will play a crucial role in the Biden administration’s ambitious efforts to combat climate change and conserve nature. Republican lawmakers …

The Hill reports: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on Thursday said he will vote to confirm Xavier Becerra as secretary of Health and Human Services. Manchin’s support will likely give Democrats the necessary votes for confirmation, after the Senate Finance Committee deadlocked on advancing President Biden’s nominee to lead the health agency. It is unclear if any GOP senators will vote …