WASHINGTON (AP) So what does a 50-50 Senate get President-elect Joe Biden?
Washington has barely had time to process the implications of Democratic control after two Georgia runoff elections that are delivering the Senate to Democrats. Hours after the races were decided, a mob of zealots ransacked the U.S. Capitol and reshaped the national and political landscape.
The unexpected new balance of power giving Democrats only the barest control of Congress has big consequences for the president-elect easy confirmation of his Cabinet most importantly but the road ahead for his ambitious legislative agenda remains complicated and murky.
Republicans remain poised to block most of Biden’s proposals, just as they thwarted much of President Barack Obama’s efforts on Capitol Hill. But 50/50 control permits action on special legislation that can’t be filibustered, and momentum for the popular parts of COVID-19 relief could easily propel an early aid bill into law.
In Biden's first event in Washington he took part in an evening ceremony near the Lincoln Memorial to honor the 400,000 American lives lost to COVID-19.
Biden arriving in Washington with big plans, big proble accesswdun.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from accesswdun.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Dr. Rachel Levine (courtesy Biden transition team)
President-elect Joe Biden announced this week that he had nominated Dr. Rachel Levine to be the assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Levine would be the first openly transgender person to be confirmed to a federal appointment by the U.S. Senate. Dr. Rachel Levine will bring the steady leadership and essential expertise we need to get people through this pandemic – no matter their ZIP code, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability – and meet the public health needs of our country in this critical moment and beyond, said Biden in a statement.