Some big spots to fill...

Sec of State

Treasury

Defense

AG

Are a few of the picks...

there’s talk the some progressives will try to shoehorn their people in there...

Most of the names I was kinda disappointed seeing. Meg Whitman for one.

>there’s talk the some progressives will try to shoehorn
>their people in there...

Not a Trump-level disaster... but very, very un-good.

...if his cabinet is anything like Obama's, we're fucked

2nd term but she had to take one for the team and eat that Benghazi shit for Hillary so she could run for prez

I just don't think there's any reason for Biden to drudge up Benghazi again if he can avoid it. Literally everything she'd do for the next four years would be "oh, ol' Benghazi Rice is back at it again."

Granted, Republicans will find an angle to bitch about everything. But Benghazi is just one of those things that won't die for a long, long time. It'd be better to not put someone so close to it in a position where they'd be part of a Senate confirmation hearing imo.

It's not even Rice's fault. We just gotta dodge the obvious bullets of dumbassery.

not like the GOP is going to let them go crazy with uber “progressive” picks

She would be a return to the Bush-era Colin Powell type of interventionist foreign policy. Rice (along with Clinton) was among the strongest voices in Obama's ear urging him to intervene in Libya - a disastrous decision that Obama cites as the biggest mistake of his presidency - and a decision which ultimately saw him split with Clinton and trust his solid original instincts and philosophy on foreign policy.

I don't think you'd see much push-back from Republicans on Rice (outside of the Benghazi lunatics). She's essentially a best-case scenario for neo-cons who largely share her views on America's role in the world.


-->

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

I will be sorely disappointed if I see a bunch of DNC retreads from the Clinton and Obama administrations. I know the Obama administration was only four years ago, but the current DNC needs a house cleaning.

Also, Stacey Abrams needs to chair the DNC. I think her goal is to run for governor of GA again in 2022, but her skills are needed to do the same things she's doing for Georgia, on a national level.

>I will be sorely disappointed if I see a bunch of DNC
>retreads from the Clinton and Obama administrations. I know
>the Obama administration was only four years ago, but the
>current DNC needs a house cleaning.
>
>Also, Stacey Abrams needs to chair the DNC. I think her goal
>is to run for governor of GA again in 2022, but her skills are
>needed to do the same things she's doing for Georgia, on a
>national level.
>
>

She needs to be involved for sure. Get more gov’t experience and exposure nationally.

mercilessly both internally and externally before the post tanked whatever popularity the person had lol

*ESPECIALLY* the southern black woman (Donna Brazile wasn't that long ago)

Literally the most thankless job ever where they're powerless to do anything but top brass bidding and the electorate blames them for everything

She's only ever confirmed in interviews a desire to run for Governor again and then Pres; Dems tried like crazy to persuade her to run for Senate (and failed).

So I guess we'll see.


All I know is I can't wait until she runs for pres lol... She's the only high profile black female politician that I relate to/root for on a deep level. I think it's her unsung hero shit.


>
>Also, Stacey Abrams needs to chair the DNC. I think her goal
>is to run for governor of GA again in 2022, but her skills are
>needed to do the same things she's doing for Georgia, on a
>national level.
>
>

>mercilessly both internally and externally before the post
>tanked whatever popularity the person had lol
>
>*ESPECIALLY* the southern black woman (Donna Brazile wasn't
>that long ago)
>
>Literally the most thankless job ever where they're powerless
>to do anything but top brass bidding and the electorate blames
>them for everything
>
>She's only ever confirmed in interviews a desire to run for
>Governor again and then Pres; Dems tried like crazy to
>persuade her to run for Senate (and failed).
>
>So I guess we'll see.
>
>
>All I know is I can't wait until she runs for pres lol...
>She's the only high profile black female politician that I
>relate to/root for on a deep level. I think it's her unsung
>hero shit.
>
>
>>
>>Also, Stacey Abrams needs to chair the DNC. I think her goal
>>is to run for governor of GA again in 2022, but her skills
>are
>>needed to do the same things she's doing for Georgia, on a
>>national level.
>>
>>
>

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GudXMXetnE


**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

in the role of ag.

i want a sneakily partisan dem ag thats gonna say all the right boy/girl scout things in front of a camera and then behind the scenes make it a point to destroy the repub power base and target conservative super pacs, churches, nra, white supremacist groups, militias, lax social media policies that promote disinformation, etc.

https://twitter.com/AOC/status/1325838653701156867

https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/08/politics/lloyd-austin-secretary-of-defense-joe-biden/index.html

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/secretary-defense/617330/

-->

.

shxt is looking like Romper Room already.

I know we're coming off the Trump admin where experience and competence were frowned upon.

It seemed like Biden was going in the other direction. Putting people in places where it made sense. People with some experience related to the cabinet post.

And I was hoping there wouldn't be the strictly political give away cabinet positions. But I guess inevitably it goes that way.

Buttigieg has no experience with transportation/infrastructure or experience managing a big organization, or experience in federal government/bureaucracy in general. He went from small town mayor directly to a cabinet secretary.

To a lesser degree, Becerra at HHS isn't desirable either. I wish it were someone health policy or health administration experience

notice not one Progressive is being looked at, yet Biden is thinking of certain Republicans for Depart. of Commerce.

I mean - I'm not gonna go too crazy because it's just nice to have Trump & Co. out of the f'ing White House.

But Pete's qualifications for Transportation Sec.?

1) Caping for Biden in the primary and villainizing Sanders
2) Reminding Joe of Beau

>notice not one Progressive is being looked at, yet Biden is
>thinking of certain Republicans for Depart. of Commerce.

Expect a lot more of that. Biden been out here lecturing Progressives and equating them with the far-right. Biden will be who he's always been: center-right politician who has spent his career appeasing Conservatives, Israel, Corporate interest & the surveillance state.

you can stop the fauxgressive routine at this point and just say youre anti mainstream dem party. its ok.

n/m

Fam is out here cheerleading for Clinton and Biden and calling out “Conservative Dems” lol.

If she really was that you’d be caping for her too. Those are your people.
-->

sponsoring anti trans legislation, and introducing bills to criminalize abortion?

where does that fit on the performative progressive platform?

cuz thats boilerplate republican party stuff right there. and biden aint the one doing it.

Far from perfect and has some blind spots.

In totality? Her fuck-ups are minuscule to those who authored the Patriot Act and fell in line to the Pentagon & Wall Street (you know, things you don’t care about as a partisan obsessed politico).

There’s a reason Nina Turner loves Tulsi - and it ain’t because she’s “anti-trans” or a conservative.

That being said - your mischaracterizations are classic Neera Tanden levels of trolling. The Human Rights Campaign gives her the highest marks on LGBQT equality - I’ll trust them over your misinformed smearing.

-->

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

-->

and you describe "legislation written and signed by tulsi gabbard" as a "smear against her"

that's your problem

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

You read a headline and feel like you’re informed.

Move along and let adults handle this one.

don't let me waste your time

gotta protect women by not at all protecting women ever

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

This is the tactic liberals use because they have no core principles. They think politics is sports and not life or death.

Biden has taken an office that no one gives seems to give a sh*t about and has put a party rock star in the department and now I've heard more talk about high speed rails and the Department of Transportation than I have heard in years. I mean can anyone name a former DoT Secretary besides Mitch McConnell's wife?

And as a mayor of a city, even a small city, he certainly has experience managing a department of transportation.

In fact, his department of transportation is award-winning.

https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/SouthBend.pdf

Also former DoT Secretaries have been former mayors or congressmen so this is in line with that.

What Trump did was put people with no experience or aptitude in high-level Cabinet positions based solely on loyalty and donorship.

Thats no where near similar to putting smart people, who have some experience in who can work with experienced people.

>I know we're coming off the Trump admin where experience and
>competence were frowned upon.
>
>It seemed like Biden was going in the other direction. Putting
>people in places where it made sense. People with some
>experience related to the cabinet post.
>
>And I was hoping there wouldn't be the strictly political give
>away cabinet positions. But I guess inevitably it goes that
>way.
>
>Buttigieg has no experience with transportation/infrastructure
>or experience managing a big organization, or experience in
>federal government/bureaucracy in general. He went from small
>town mayor directly to a cabinet secretary.
>
>To a lesser degree, Becerra at HHS isn't desirable either. I
>wish it were someone health policy or health administration
>experience
>
>


**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

are still armchair quarterbacking biden like they have some sort of expertise or good judgment. its the weirdest thing.

the most successful aspects of bidens run have pretty much been him just doing the complete opposite of what they said he should do.

You just see it as a good thing. And I don't necessarily disagree. I just don't think it should be the only thing.

Yeah he's done some things with bike lanes in South Bend. But can he handle ***Infrastructure Week***

I look at cabinet secretaries kind of like CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. Pete may have the qualities to handle it. But he hasn't had the chance to demonstrate it at a lower level

while superficial ‘progressives’ are getting salty over the fact he isnt elevating bernie loyalists (what they mean when *they* say progressive)...his picks for dot, epa, interior, energy, etc show him quietly reconfiguring the larger shell agencies/departments to prioritize a broader large scale turn towards a greener future.

nuances like that arent in the headlines/notifications tho and most people dont really care enough to dig deeper and see the bigger picture.

his proposed pick for interior dept has been one of the most vocal anti-fracking and green new deal supporters in congress. but since she iant a prominent bernie cheerleader than i guess she isnt progressive.

I think all you need is a forward thinking mind in that chair who is going to push rail.

I know in Charlotte Foxxe was in a heated battle with NC gov who didn’t want to fund rail in Charlotte.

He bounced for that Sec or Transpo and I believe it helped Charlotte get funding and now we have light rail lines going in all over this city.

to faithfully carry out his agenda.

which is something im glad a dem has finally woken up to like repubs have been doing.

these agencies have tons of career/political staff with plenty of experience on their own. why install a super experienced but independent/neutral head who might not even do what you want them to do? you can just install an exec to intentionally steer everyone in the direction that best suits your objectives with regard to the political/perception ramifications too.

pete is gonna work hard to get some ambitious achievements on the mantle to make biden look good and also bolster his own credentials for his future political aspirations. really a win/win for everyone if you care about end results/policy and not just the name tag pageantry.

i wouldnt be surprised if biden picked doug jones for doj to specifically take a sledgehammer to white/right wing extermist groups (while driving a stake through conservative political organizing/strength) and people still bitched about him not picking someone with enough experience inside formal/dc doj.

Pete has baggage and Joe can pick someone better than Doug Jones.

The leaked audio doesn't help.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/leaked-recording-biden-says-gop-used-defund-police-beat-living-n1250757

if he can run the DOT?

President is a completely different thing. Since it's an elected position, it's less about competence and more about other stuff (themes, symbols, charisma, charm, inspiration, excitement, etc.)

Running for president doesn't prepare you for heading a 60,000 person organization.

Couldn’t have made a better choice.

-->

a native indigenous representative to watch over federal land as it should be.

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

Time to put all your fever dreams of Trump crony prosecutions away.

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/06/biden-to-tap-merrick-garland-for-attorney-general-455410

Wastes of a pick.

if thats the focus of the doj then thats cool with me.

and i doubt he will just turn away investigations into the trump administration when theres smoke there.

doug jones was my 1st pick because i have a solid understanding of his politics when it comes to white supremacy, institutional racism, and criminal justice.

but merrick garland obviously knows the law/judiciary inside out and could be a more effective litigator/prosecutor across the board (and hopefully on those issues).

https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/1348031632666718210

this should be music to many progressives ears (if they genuinely care about policy).

https://mobile.twitter.com/washingtonpost/status/1363737437156093952

the same thing a lot of us wanted doug jones in the position for.

its pretty cool to see him mention the roots of the doj in reconstruction and how its 1st official mandate was fighting for equal rights for black people.
https://mobile.twitter.com/mattgreenfield/status/1363475986810044423

looks like he is a true institutionalist and wants to plant the doj firmly on its original mission (will be much needed to battle the wave of voter suppression making its way through state legislatures).

i was kinda soft on garland but i think biden prolly chose the right person in the end.

not only based on what he will focus on...but also he was arguably the most powerful and knowledgeable legal mind on executive branch authority and constitutional compliance as the chief justice on the dc circuit court of appeals. so he will do a better job than anybody making sure cases are legally sound and not getting smacked down in court due to sloppy/overzealous litigation/prosecution.

along with Collins and Romney.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/sen-susan-collins-deals-neera-tanden-s-omb-nomination-another-n1258483

https://www.wsj.com/articles/sen-joe-manchin-opposes-neera-tandens-nomination-to-lead-omb-11613770656


WASHINGTON—Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin said he would oppose Neera Tanden’s nomination to lead the Office of Management and Budget, citing her past statements on social media, a stance that imperils her chances of getting confirmed by the Senate.

Mr. Manchin, of West Virginia, said he made his decision after reviewing the comments critical of lawmakers she made on Twitter while she led the Center for American Progress, a center-left think tank.

Mr. Manchin, a centrist who represents a state that voted twice for former President Donald Trump, is seen as a swing vote in the Senate.

“I believe her overtly partisan statements will have a toxic and detrimental impact on the important working relationship between members of Congress and the next director of the Office of Management and Budget,” Mr. Manchin said in a Friday statement. “For this reason, I cannot support her nomination.”

President Biden said the nomination would go forward. “I think we are going to find the votes and get her confirmed,” he said. Asked by reporters if he planned to pull the nomination, he responded, “No.”

Send her packing back to msnbc.

She was a terrible choice.

>Send her packing back to msnbc.
>
>She was a terrible choice.

MSNBC, MERCY ME. the RADICAL SOCIALIST NETWORK.

FOH, they oppose her for being 'partisan???"'

FOH.

F
O
H

when it's a republican being artisan is what gets them in - if it's a democrat they also better be a republican.

'progressives' are popping bottles with the fake self righteous republicans and joe fucking manchin.

i dont even know how they explain that one away.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/why-neera-tanden-biden-s-new-pick-for-a-top-economic-role-has-been-called-a-terrible-leader-and-impossible-to-trust-by-some-of-her-former-colleagues/ar-BB1buIkC


https://www.salon.com/2016/06/20/trump_proposed_taking_libyas_oil_in_return_for_bombing_it_just_like_clinton_ally_neera_tanden/



She's a pretty terrible person. I'm not familiar with her tweets, never paid them attention, but she is horrid. There's no real defense for her other than party loyalty.

>She's a pretty terrible person. I'm not familiar with her
>tweets, never paid them attention, but she is horrid. There's
>no real defense for her other than party loyalty.

but yeah, Neera can suck an egg.

and tout his conservative democratic unicorn-ism. But nobody should be supporting Tanden's nomination, *especially* progressives.

Tanden's been a grotesque deficit hawk, has championed social security cuts, done all she can to hinder Medicare-for-all - and even implied that invading Libya for oil was sensible foreign policy.

Her "Center for American Progress" (which has been about anything *but* progress) has essentially been a vehicle for laundering corruption in government lobbying where she's acted as a Clinton henchman proxy for decades.

She ain't the one.

-->

>https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/why-neera-tanden-biden-s-new-pick-for-a-top-economic-role-has-been-called-a-terrible-leader-and-impossible-to-trust-by-some-of-her-former-colleagues/ar-BB1buIkC
>
>
>https://www.salon.com/2016/06/20/trump_proposed_taking_libyas_oil_in_return_for_bombing_it_just_like_clinton_ally_neera_tanden/
>
>
>
>She's a pretty terrible person. I'm not familiar with her
>tweets, never paid them attention, but she is horrid. There's
>no real defense for her other than party loyalty.

exactly.

I don't know if the fact that GOPers and Bernie folks hate her is good enough reason to like her, but I can't stomach GOPers talking about tone and decorum.



**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

I'm still waiting for somebody to tell me why Tanden being confirmed is a good thing.

-->

Its not really hard to do.


Iono. Letting chronic twitter trolls be in office doesn't sound like it'll end well. Sounds familiar.

Bad pick by Biden.

if nothing else.

Not sure why the Biden admin thought she'd get approved, regardless if one agrees or disagrees with why.

Couldn't have imagined a funnier outcome.

On both sides.
The president was elected. He should be able to put who ever he wants in those cabinet positions.
They are supposed to act on his behalf anyways, so why does it even matter? You reject one nominee, then he'll just put some one else up who will follow the same guidance.

I thought the fights against Trump nominees were dumb. And the fights now equally dumb. Just pass them all through

You think it was ok to confirm Sessions, Mnuchin, Perry, DeVos ? No pushback ? A rubber stamp for Trump selections ?


Damnnnnnnnnnnnnn

The president is elected to run the executive branch. Let him run it.
If he runs it poorly, there's a political process to handle that: elections. Or impeachment of cabinet officials if necessary.

When I see the senate pushing back on Haaland because she is "anti fossil fuel" or Devos because of all the terrible policies she pushed for, I wonder what the presidential election was for. This is what people voted for.

So let Trump put My Pillow nut or Rudy in a Cabinet position and wait for impeachment to stop them before people get hurt ?

lol

stop them AFTER they hurt a lot of people but not just any people. people that matter enough to republican senators. that is if they dont decide they learned their lesson.

Klan capitol mob should get an opportunity to perform poorly.

What is cabinet secretary My Pillow Guy doing to hurt people? Whatever it is was sanctioned by the person elected president.

So the issue is not with the person leading the department. It's with the president

The issue is with both person leading and president.

or maybe you really think Presidents are kings

There has to be some semblance of check & balance, or else we really do have zero balance of power within the branches of govt.

-->

These fights are in no way dumb and the Trump-Republican Senate years showed how having no checks can become an absolute danger. Someone like Betsy Devos should never ever ever ever be allowed anyone near a cabinet position......more importantly Education.