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Thread: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

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    pacifism's Avatar see the day
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    Default President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    An incoming U.S. president has to make thousands of appointees. Some need to be confirmed by the Senate, and most do not. This is also a time of a lot name-dropping, rumor mills, and “considerations” as people and factions jockey for prominence in the next administration. Even though the president is the one who calls the shots – the buck stops here – who he chooses to surround himself with may indicate what kind of presidency he is pursuing. President-Elect Biden has started naming people in his administration.

    https://www.npr.org/2020/11/17/93384...been-nominated
    https://fivethirtyeight.com/features...dministration/

    So far, several positions that do not need confirmation have been announced. Designated Chief of Staff Ron Klain and Counselor to the President Steve Ricchetti were both VP Chiefs of Staff under Biden during the Obama administration. In fact, many of the people named so far have similar histories. Perhaps the most high-profile name is that former Senator and former Secretary of State John Kerry will be on the National Security Council for climate-related issues.

    A few more appointments had been made a few days later, notably Linda Thomas-Greenfield for U.N. Ambassador, Jake Sullivan for National Security Advisor, and a cabinet nominee: Antony Blinken for Secretary of State. Anyone who claims that both parties are the same will have to explain to me how these foreign policy aides and advisors are going to make recommendations anything like the current president’s.

    These are just baby steps towards a long process. My first impression is that these people may not be centrists, but they are a far cry from the left-wing of the party or any kind of radical that Biden would supposedly be at the beck and call of. Despite a few bones thrown to the progressive faction, the appointees seem to trend towards Obama administration officials more than anything. In my mind it kind of tries to portray the last four years as an embarrassing outburst and America has calmed down now. Even though that's obviously not true and the republicans can very well win the White House in 2024, it's an interesting angle. Is that a fair assessment? Is it too early to suggest that this appears to be shaping up like a 3rd Obama term instead of a progressive overhaul? Or is Biden simply playing it safe because of a possibly Republican-controlled Senate, pending Georgia’s Senate runoff elections on January 5?
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    alhoon's Avatar Comes Rei Militaris
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Well, Biden is not an ultra-progressive and he's centrist. He also worked with Obama-era administrators for 8 years as a VP of Obama.

    While things will be "pleasantly forgettable" in the near future, with Trump leading the opposition the divisiveness will remain. Biden will soon (perhaps even before his first day in office!) be named the worst president in USA's history by a loud conservative minority that represents perhaps 2% of the people and makes 20% of social media posts. The first salvos against Biden and his cabinet have already been fired.
    alhoon is not a member of the infamous Hoons: a (fictional) nazi-sympathizer KKK clan. Of course, no Hoon would openly admit affiliation to the uninitiated.
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by pacifism View Post
    An incoming U.S. president has to make thousands of appointees. Some need to be confirmed by the Senate, and most do not.
    Most actually do have to be confirmed by the Senate. They just sail through and aren't worth either the politics or the news.
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    So between the two chambers, the Senate is by far the most powerful if, along with legislature, they also have the power to hit hard the executive branch by not appointing the nominees.

    Can't the executive branch overcome the senate in the appointments, even if it takes time? I know that in some bicameral countries, the upper house can block something up to three times. How is it in USA?
    How many times can the senate block a law and send it back to the House for changes? Is there a limit in the times the senate can say "We don't like candidate X. Rethink about it and apply again in 3 months." or something?
    Is someone that got an "Nope" from the senate unable to be re-suggested?
    Last edited by alhoon; December 04, 2020 at 02:03 AM.
    alhoon is not a member of the infamous Hoons: a (fictional) nazi-sympathizer KKK clan. Of course, no Hoon would openly admit affiliation to the uninitiated.
    "Angry Uncle Gordon" describes me well.
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  5. #5

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    While things will be "pleasantly forgettable" in the near future, with Trump leading the opposition the divisiveness will remain.
    I think the polarization and divisiveness will only grow. Trump was a symptom of it, not the cause.

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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Knight of Heaven View Post
    I think the polarization and divisiveness will only grow. Trump was a symptom of it, not the cause.
    Agreed, I think Trump is a straw dog and he's about to be tossed. The republican party has struggled with the Koch/tea party/[currently supporting Trump] faction steering things into an ugly space, but it got them SCOTUS for a generation so why would they stop?

    On the flip side the Democrats have rolling riots in their core electorates: looks like angry mobs make for more motivated voters.
    Jatte lambastes Calico Rat

  7. #7

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Knight of Heaven View Post
    I think the polarization and divisiveness will only grow. Trump was a symptom of it, not the cause.
    Highly doubt it. I don't think the country would not have been where it is today, in terms of polarization, had Hillary been President. Trump is not a "symptom". He's a multiplier.

  8. #8

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    People voted for Trump, because they are tired of Politicians like Hillary. Like Biden, like Bush, like Obama and such.
    A Populist winning an election is always a sign of social discontentment. That Fracture is not going anywhere. In fact i think will only grow with Biden and his neocons in office.



    Also this elections were more close then the democrats would like it to be.


    US 2020 elections was worst possible outcome so says Yanis Varoufakis.

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Last edited by Knight of Heaven; December 07, 2020 at 05:56 AM.

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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    People voted for Trump, because they are tired of Politicians like Hillary. Like Biden, like Bush, like Obama and such.
    A Populist winning an election is always a sign of social discontentment. That Fracture is not going anywhere. In fact i think will only grow with Biden and his neocons in office.
    That's a narrative I suppose. But of course Hillary won the popular vote. The Republican keep elections close only because the of EC system and Gerrymandering. in a parliamentary system or even a US with a not artificially constrained EC - Trump would not be president.
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Knight of Heaven View Post
    People voted for Trump, because they are tired of Politicians like Hillary. Like Biden, like Bush, like Obama and such.
    A Populist winning an election is always a sign of social discontentment. That Fracture is not going anywhere. In fact i think will only grow with Biden and his neocons in office.
    Joe Biden just won the Presidency. By your logic, this is indicative that the country wants to heal and rejects polarization.

    Also this elections were more close then the democrats would like it to be.


    US 2020 elections was worst possible outcome so says Yanis Varoufakis.
    Yanis' political opinion is not really at odds with my statement.

  11. #11

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Knight of Heaven View Post
    Also this elections were more close then the democrats would like it to be.
    Another narrative I suppose.

    You could at least stop being so vague about it and come out with the honesty. The only close federal elections were in Congress. Trump got his ass handed to him. So says the recounts he keeps asking for.
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    alhoon's Avatar Comes Rei Militaris
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    I am a bit confused.


    Progressive 1: “The honeymoon is not over and we’re going to continue to be optimistic, we fought like hell to get him elected and so far he hasn’t totally, you know, burned us in any way,” said a staffer for a progressive member of Congress who requested anonymity."

    Progressive 2: "The honeymoon ended at the altar when the networks pronounced Biden president-elect," said Jamie Henn, director of environmental group 350.org's Fossil Free Media.

    OK, two different progressives, different opinions. But the headlines of the articles are "Honeymoon not over" and "Honeymoon over". And they were both nearly on top of each other in my news feed.
    And the media wonder why people finding it harder to trust them.
    alhoon is not a member of the infamous Hoons: a (fictional) nazi-sympathizer KKK clan. Of course, no Hoon would openly admit affiliation to the uninitiated.
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  13. #13

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    I think, alhoon, if you want to make yet another complaint about Progressives, you should post in a thread you've created specifically for that task. Do you have anything meaningful to say about Biden's cabinet?

  14. #14
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Knight of Heaven View Post
    People voted for Trump, because they are tired of Politicians like Hillary. Like Biden, like Bush, like Obama and such.
    Those are three very different politicians. I think its a mistake to bag and bin them together. Bush I was a nice person in charge of a pretty grim corporate machine, pretty much the same combine that got Trump in. Obama was a personally competent guy who satisfied the gatekeepers and the public with a fair handicap of bad ears and unsuitable genetics. Hilary has about one thing in common with George Bush, she was a dynastic placeholder and for that (as well as many other well attested reasons) bad for the US system.

    Quote Originally Posted by Love Mountain View Post
    Joe Biden just won the Presidency. By your logic, this is indicative that the country wants to heal and rejects polarization.
    Thats a very good point, and I have to concede I am being a bit bleak in my assessment. I don't much like Biden but at least people opted for comfortable whatever instead of more rubbing the face on the cheese grater. Just bro-simping for Bernie I guess, why do we want for our friends what we cannot have ourselves? He'd be soooo good for you guys, you'd be great together squeee.

    Quote Originally Posted by Love Mountain View Post
    Yanis' political opinion is not really at odds with my statement.
    I disagree with him about the outcome. There were many worse possible outcomes, eg Trump in a freaking landslide. 4 more years of undercooked hipshooting blather? At least Biden's narrative doesn't require we deny the existence of an actual pandemic.
    Quote Originally Posted by alhoon View Post
    I am a bit confused.


    Progressive 1: “The honeymoon is not over and we’re going to continue to be optimistic, we fought like hell to get him elected and so far he hasn’t totally, you know, burned us in any way,” said a staffer for a progressive member of Congress who requested anonymity."

    Progressive 2: "The honeymoon ended at the altar when the networks pronounced Biden president-elect," said Jamie Henn, director of environmental group 350.org's Fossil Free Media.

    OK, two different progressives, different opinions. But the headlines of the articles are "Honeymoon not over" and "Honeymoon over". And they were both nearly on top of each other in my news feed.
    And the media wonder why people finding it harder to trust them.
    If you find that confusing for the love of God don't try to make sense of the Trump narrative. Its like a stream of semi-consciousness performance piece by an egomaniac with the attention span of a coked up toddler throwing a tantrum on a live TV reality show. Actually it is that. Thats who you guys elected.

    I'd be more worrying if the US slipped back to the absolute lockstep spin of the Bush II era, when every FOX anchor and every radio ranter popped up with the exact same tag line.
    Jatte lambastes Calico Rat

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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Biden with a divided Congress is probably the 2nd worst outcome after Trump winning.

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    alhoon's Avatar Comes Rei Militaris
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by conon394 View Post
    That's a narrative I suppose. But of course Hillary won the popular vote. The Republican keep elections close only because the of EC system and Gerrymandering. in a parliamentary system or even a US with a not artificially constrained EC - Trump would not be president.
    Well, let's not rule out that if Trump was "playing" for the national vote instead of the EC, he may well have got it in 2016. He was playing to win certain states and he did. Had he been playing to win votes in general, he would have showed up in Rural California and Texas and whip up his base there. It may not have worked, it may had. But it certainly not hard to imagine him getting the popular vote in 2016, when he barely lost it. And 2.5 million votes in 135-140 million votes is "barely losing" the popular vote.

    Quote Originally Posted by Love Mountain View Post
    I think, alhoon, if you want to make yet another complaint about Progressives, you should post in a thread you've created specifically for that task. Do you have anything meaningful to say about Biden's cabinet?
    Yes! I do in fact.
    https://www.yahoo.com/news/pete-butt...193600291.html

    Progressive-regressive notions affecting Biden. Here's the damning part:
    "It's not that Biden isn't fond of Buttigieg; He has gone so far as to compare the former mayor to his late son Beau. Instead, Biden has been focused on picking women and people of color for his top spots "

    In short "Sorry Butty, I love you as a son but you have balls and you are white. Your gender and color excludes you from a lot of jobs in this administration.
    I swear, if you were black, or even a woman, I would give you the position you wanted without a second thought. But we can't hire you because you're both white and a man."
    Last edited by alhoon; December 09, 2020 at 05:47 PM.
    alhoon is not a member of the infamous Hoons: a (fictional) nazi-sympathizer KKK clan. Of course, no Hoon would openly admit affiliation to the uninitiated.
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  17. #17
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by alhoon View Post
    ...
    "It's not that Biden isn't fond of Buttigieg; He has gone so far as to compare the former mayor to his late son Beau. Instead, Biden has been focused on picking women and people of color for his top spots "

    In short "Sorry Butty, I love you as a son but you have balls and you are white. Your gender and color excludes you from a lot of jobs in this administration.
    I swear, if you were black, or even a woman, I would give you the position you wanted without a second thought. But we can't hire you because you're both white and a man."
    Biden liking someone doesn't make them cabinet worthy, it means they smell like a teenage girl's shampoo.

    If this is a quota I am against quotas as inherently unfair (they usually end up being counterproductive as well as having unintended consequences) but I see the argument for them. I'm not an ideologue so give the process a trial and see how it flies within reason.

    Of course maybe you should consider to possibility there are actually some non-whites and non-men who can do politics? Pretty sure Biden didn't get his job on a merit based system: the guy is barely functional so lets keep it all in a bit of perspective. If his cabinet ca all dress themselves and aren't wearing adult diapers lets say they cleared his bar.

    Its pretty easy to flip your humorous version too. "A cabinet of anything by white men, how racist and sexist! the world will end if [one gender but not the other] or [one fabricated genetic/appearance based identifier, but non of the others] is omitted".

    Its kind of a lame joke though, and its been a long hard road for women and non-white people to even be considered seriously. When they arrive they get told "oh great choice, you earned it [IN CASE YOU CAN'T TELL I'M BEING IRONIC MARGE]".
    Jatte lambastes Calico Rat

  18. #18

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Love Mountain View Post
    Highly doubt it. I don't think the country would not have been where it is today, in terms of polarization, had Hillary been President. Trump is not a "symptom". He's a multiplier.
    He's both a symptom and a cause. He didn't create the crisis, but he "rubs exposed nerves and heightens the tensions of this difficult time", as do many on the Left, like Robert "Heck yeah we're taxing your churches" O'Rourke. He's a flamethrower instead of a fire extinguisher.

    Now that he's gone there's a real opportunity to make progress on rebuilding institutions and promoting pluralism and tolerance, but it's largely contingent on the Left playing along. If they don't reject the illiberals on their own side, there's bound to be another illiberal reaction from the Right.
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    alhoon's Avatar Comes Rei Militaris
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    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by Cyclops View Post
    Biden liking someone doesn't make them cabinet worthy, it means they smell like a teenage girl's shampoo.
    I mildly disagree with much of your post, but I strongly agree with the above statement, which is both hilarious and true. +rep
    alhoon is not a member of the infamous Hoons: a (fictional) nazi-sympathizer KKK clan. Of course, no Hoon would openly admit affiliation to the uninitiated.
    "Angry Uncle Gordon" describes me well.
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  20. #20

    Default Re: President-Elect Biden Begins Naming Appointees

    Quote Originally Posted by alhoon View Post
    Well, let's not rule out that if Trump was "playing" for the national vote instead of the EC, he may well have got it in 2016. He was playing to win certain states and he did. Had he been playing to win votes in general, he would have showed up in Rural California and Texas and whip up his base there. It may not have worked, it may had. But it certainly not hard to imagine him getting the popular vote in 2016, when he barely lost it. And 2.5 million votes in 135-140 million votes is "barely losing" the popular vote.
    You're assigning a level of competency to Trump that he does not possess.

    Yes! I do in fact.
    https://www.yahoo.com/news/pete-butt...193600291.html

    Progressive-regressive notions affecting Biden. Here's the damning part:
    "It's not that Biden isn't fond of Buttigieg; He has gone so far as to compare the former mayor to his late son Beau. Instead, Biden has been focused on picking women and people of color for his top spots "

    ]In short "Sorry Butty, I love you as a son but you have balls and you are white. Your gender and color excludes you from a lot of jobs in this administration.
    I swear, if you were black, or even a woman, I would give you the position you wanted without a second thought. But we can't hire you because you're both white and a man."
    Progressives complain he's not progressive enough. Conservatives are complaining that he's too progressive. Reactionaries and conservatives are wrong on the matter of diversity, especially when it comes to cabinet picks. There are millions of Hispanics, Women, Native Americans, whatever. And I guarantee that every type of group, ethnicity, blah blah blah contains people who are well qualified for that poisition. Taking that into account, it is a net benefit to pick a person of color or a woman over a white male simply because it scores political points and it sends a signal to minorities that their political participation matters. So long as person X is not qualified, I don't see any issue.

    Moreover, any Pete Buttigieg assignment will be viewed as a product of political horse-trading, not that he doesn't have a fairly good resume, a stellar education, and fairly good experience in both executive and political positions. All before the age of 40. But, it is important to avoid impropriety, especially right after an administration that's notorious for its political grift and kleptocracy.

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