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Biden Cabinet To Potentially Include Susan Rice, Pete Buttigieg, And Other Progressives

Image CreditVice President Joe Biden, with President Barack Obama, gestures as he speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2015, to announce that he will not run for the presidential nomination. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Biden said his cabinet would “bring the Mayor Petes of the world into this administration… and even if they don’t come in, their ideas come into this administration.”

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Strategists close to Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his campaign say that deliberations surrounding cabinet appointments have begun, reports Politico. According to their insider knowledge, many believe that Biden’s cabinet picks will be wide-ranging and ideologically diverse, in order to appeal to the growing progressive sect in the Democratic party.

“Does it mean that the chief of staff won’t be [longtime Biden advisers] Ron Klain or Steve Ricchetti or something? No, but it does mean you’re going to see some unusual suspects in the government, I think,” one Democratic strategist told Politico.

Sen. Ted Kaufman, another one of Biden’s advisors and his Senate successor, however, says that the cabinet picks will largely rely on those with experience over political preferences.

“I think this is about getting seasoned people that are really qualified to do the job. People with experience, people that are smart as hell and people that reflect America,” Kaufman said. “A lot of this isn’t about ideology or anything else. It’s totally about what do you do with the incredible hollowing out that Trump has done … so many of the agencies just are empty, the career people have left.

Among some of Biden’s most likely picks for the cabinet include Elizabeth Warren for Treasury Secretary, Susan Rice for Secretary of State, Antony Blinken for National Security Advisor, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti for transportation or Housing and Urban Development, and Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), who was also in the running to be Biden’s Vice President, for HUD or Health and Human Services.

Others up for consideration include New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Jared Bernstein, and Pete Buttigieg, former mayor of South Bend, Indiana who has publicly expressed interest in joining Biden’s cabinet for “a chance to return to public service.”

Biden previously said that his goal when choosing cabinet members is “to bring the Mayor Petes of the world into this administration … and even if they don’t come in, their ideas come into this administration.”

Despite the wide array of choices in both the mainstream and progressive parts of the Democratic party Biden has to choose from, no one is denying the fact that he has easy access and previous knowledge and experience with numerous Obama-era officials. Some have even speculated whether or not Hillary Clinton may be asked to join the cabinet.

 

While cabinet picks are usually not made or announced until after the election, Hillary Clinton and her team also began conversations about cabinet appointments in August before the upcoming November election in 2016, despite claims by the same people that it would be “far too premature.” Among her most likely cabinet picks were John Podesta for Energy Secretary and Michèle Flournoy for Defense Secretary.