Although the transition deadlock continues, “President-elect” Biden has begun to expand his core leadership team. According to the Associated Press, on November 17, local time, “President-elect” Biden announced the appointment of nine senior White House officials.
Most of the appointed officials are from Biden’s campaign team, including 4 people of color and 5 women.
However, Biden’s appointment decision has caused considerable controversy in China, and some officials have even been accused of “unable to serve the public.” Who are these 9 officials? What kind of controversy did they cause? “Foreign Affairs” takes you to sort out an article.
Who are the 9 generals in the white house ?
According to “USA Today” reports, on November 17, local time, “President-elect” Biden received a national security briefing for the first time in Delaware. On the same day, he also announced the appointment of nine core members of the White House staff. “USA Today” pointed out that although Trump is still challenging the election results, Biden has begun to “non-stop” to enrich his staff.
The campaign manager of the Biden team, Jane O’Malley Dillon, will serve as deputy director of the White House office. She participated in 7 presidential campaigns and served as deputy campaign manager in Obama’s re-election campaign. According to the “transition website”, Dillon is considered the first female campaign manager to lead the Democratic presidential campaign.
Mark Donilon served as the chief strategist of the Biden campaign team and helped Biden confirm the campaign style and speech focus. He has now been appointed as the chief strategist of the White House. According to the “transition website”, Donilon has participated in six presidential election campaigns and is a recognized strategist, media consultant and polling expert.
Steve Ricetti, chairman of the Biden campaign team, will serve as the president’s advisor. He has also held important positions in the Obama administration and the Clinton administration. Anne Tomasini, who served as an important position on the Biden team during the campaign, will serve as the White House’s head of operations.
Louisiana Rep. Cedric Richmond, who was the national co-chair of the Biden campaign, said he will resign from the House of Representatives to serve as Biden’s senior adviser and director of the White House Office of Public Participation.
Julie Chavez Rodriguez, who was the deputy campaign manager of the Biden team and a senior aide to “Vice President-elect” Harris, will serve as the director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Prior to this, Rodriguez also served in the Obama administration, served as a special assistant to the president, and also served as the senior deputy director for public participation.
Dana Remus, the general counsel of Biden’s campaign, will soon serve as Biden’s legal counsel. She was originally a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law, and later served as the general counsel of the Obama Foundation and Obama’s private office.
Two other officials will be responsible for working for Biden’s wife Jill Biden. Julissa Reynoso, who served as the US ambassador to Uruguay during the Obama administration, will serve as Jill’s chief of staff. Anthony Bernal, the deputy campaign manager of the Biden campaign, will become Jill’s senior adviser.
On November 17, local time, Biden issued a statement saying, “I am proud to announce that the senior members of the team will help us better complete the reconstruction work. Currently, the United States is facing huge challenges, and they have brought us a difference. We will overcome difficulties together and work hard to build a stronger and more united country.”
Earlier, Biden announced the appointment of long-term aide and senior Democratic official Klein as the White House Chief of Staff. Up to now, Biden has appointed 10 senior White House officials.
What challenges have the appointment decision been met?
According to Fox News, Biden’s personnel appointment decision aroused dissatisfaction among progressive liberals in the Democratic Party, who pointed out that the appointments of Richmond and Rickety were “unacceptable.” Rojas, a senior official of the “Justice Democratic Party”, believes that “they are insiders who advocate being friendly to enterprises.”
Rickety has been in the lobbying industry for more than a decade, and US pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer have been his clients. Rojas pointed out that as a lobbyist for a former pharmaceutical company, Ricketti represents a group that strongly opposes universal health insurance and the public production of prescription drugs. Rojas said, “If Biden wants to make major reforms to the medical security system in the post-epidemic era, then he will be directly interfered by private power.”
In addition, Biden’s appointment of Richmond has also been questioned by environmental organizations. According to the “Capitol Hill” report, the progressive environmental organization “Sunrise Movement” claimed that Richmond’s appointment made them feel “betrayed”.
The organization issued a statement saying that during his tenure in Congress, Richmond received more donations from fossil fuel companies than any Democrat. He not only turned a blind eye to environmental issues such as the climate crisis, but also worked hard to cater to fossil fuel companies.
Rojas said that a government that advocates for business-friendliness cannot help Biden lead the progressive Democratic Party. He pointed out that if Biden continues to make appointment decisions that are beneficial to the company, then the friendly relationship he has established with progressives will face the risk of a rapid collapse.
Earlier, the progressive group also wrote a letter to Biden, in which it read, “We hope you do not nominate or hire company executives, lobbyists, and company consultants for senior positions.” They believe that these people are not capable of “serving the welfare of the general public.”
The “Washington Post” wrote an article to counterattack that Biden needs the support of the business community to gather consensus among Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives.
Political contributions and lobbying teams have indeed had a corrosive impact on the political process, and the public’s concerns about corruption are completely reasonable. However, it is unacceptable to claim that anyone connected with a for-profit enterprise is morally damaged and cannot work for public welfare.
What internal challenges does the personnel team face?
Prior to this, Jimmy Carter’s senior White House officials were all allies during his tenure as governor of Georgia, but their lack of experience in governance directly led to Carter’s downfall. The political news website Politico analysis pointed out that the level of coordination and cooperation among senior White House officials will directly determine the quality of governance.
And what are the characteristics of the staff team appointed by Biden this time? What kind of challenges will they bring to Biden in internal collaboration?
According to the “New York Times” report, according to the appointment list announced by Biden, Biden is trying to fulfill his promise during the election campaign and establish a diverse cabinet. However, this means that Biden needs to work hard to coordinate people from different backgrounds, different races, and different ideas to reach consensus at work. The diverse membership also poses challenges for Biden to coordinate teamwork.
In addition, there is inevitably a tense competitive relationship within the team, and this tension will also cause friction in the team.
Prior to this, Klein and Ricketti became the final candidates for the White House Chief of Staff. In the end, Biden chose Klein for the position. Biden’s aides said Riketty was very disappointed that he was not elected to the post of Chief of Staff of the White House. This shows that how to coordinate the competition of interests within the team is also a big problem that Biden needs to face.
In addition, represented by Klein, Ricketti and Donilon, most of Biden’s cabinet team members have rich political experience. They have held important positions in the government and know how to help Biden find the best in the campaign. To win over voters.
However, in addition to senior predecessors, there will be a steady stream of new people joining the team. By then, differences in positions, concepts, and even interests will become more apparent. Politico analysis pointed out that the success of the “new cabinet” formed by Biden will largely depend on his ability to integrate the old and new factions well.
