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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Joe Biden will get the Democratic Congress he sought after his party’s stunning success in Georgia, but his expansive legislative agenda on issues such as healthcare and climate change cannot be assured a smooth ride.
FILE PHOTO: Democratic presidential candidate and former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden speaks with Senator Chuck Schumer at a ceremony for the 19th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City, New York, U.S., September 11, 2020. Amr Alfiky/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Wins by Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff for the state’s two U.S. Senate seats in Tuesday’s runoff elections will give the party control of both chambers in Congress and the White House.
Rep. G.K. Butterfield, North Carolina Democrat, swiftly endorsed Mr. Regan for the post on Thursday.
“As North Carolina’s chief environmental official, Secretary Regan has demonstrated he understands that climate change is a threat to human existence,” said Mr. Butterfield, a past chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus.
Ms. Haaland, a supporter of the “Green New Deal” economic makeover to combat climate change, would be the first Native American to serve as interior secretary.
Mr. Biden “put a true movement progressive in his Cabinet” with the Haaland pick, said Stephanie Taylor, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee.
During the campaign, Mr. Biden released a $2 trillion plan to combat climate change with a goal of moving the U.S. toward net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Biden names New Mexicoâs Halland U.S. Secretary of the Interior By Jennifer A. Dlouhy and Jennifer Epstein on 12/18/2020
Interior Secretary nominee Deb Halland
WASHINGTON (Bloomberg) - President-elect Joe Biden has tapped Deb Haaland to lead the Interior Department, according to people familiar with the matter, putting the Democratic representative in line to become the first American Indian cabinet secretary in U.S. history.
If confirmed as Interior secretary, Haaland would have a chance to chart the future of conservation, recreation and oil drilling on federal land, including territory in New Mexico, the state she represents in the House of Representatives.
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President-elect Joe Biden has chosen Rep. Deb Haaland to lead the Department of Interior, making her the first Native American to hold the job
Haaland had a broad coalition of support including tribal leaders, mainstream Democrats, progressive activists and Hollywood stars
In 2019, when Haaland joined Congress, she and Rep. Sharice Davids became the first two Native American women to serve
President-elect Joe Biden has chosen Rep. Deb Haaland to lead the Department of Interior, a historic pick in the Haaland will be the first Native American put in charge of the agency that oversees tribal lands.
Haaland, who just won a second term in the U.S. House, was supported by a broad coalition of tribal leaders and activists, mainstream Democrats, progressive activists and Hollywood stars.