The decision came after Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) vowed Tuesday afternoon to vote no on Biden’s “non-diversity” Cabinet nominees until the White House addressed the issue. Lawmakers have been pushing Biden for months for greater AAPI representation in the most senior levels of his administration.
All 15 of Biden’s Cabinet secretary slots have now been filled, and there are no Asian Americans or Pacific Islanders among them, the first time in more than 20 years a president’s Cabinet has not included at least one AAPI secretary.
Duckworth said that over the past six months she has repeatedly offered the White House the names of “many well-qualified AAPIs” for Cabinet positions, but those individuals “never even got a phone call,” she said.
“At this point … they can call me and tell me what the proposal is,” Duckworth said of the White House. “But until then, I am a no vote on the floor on all non-diversity nominees. You know, I will vote for racial minorities and I will vote for LGBTQ. But anybody else, I’m not voting for.”
Hirono later told reporters that she spoke with the White House on Monday night and was joining Duckworth in her push for AAPI representation in Biden’s Cabinet.
“I talked with Tammy about her clarified position, and I’m joining her in there, which means that we would like to have a commitment from the White House that there’ll be more diversity representation in the Cabinet, and in senior White House positions,” Hirono told reporters Tuesday. “And until that happens, we will be able to join her in voting no on non-diversity nominees. I think that is a reasonable position.”
Late Tuesday, Hirono said that she had had a “productive conversation” with Biden officials “to make clear my perspective about the importance of diversity in the President’s cabinet.“
Both she and Duckworth announced they were backing down from their ultimatums after the White House agreed to appoint an AAPI liaison.
“Sen. Duckworth appreciates the Biden Administration’s assurances that it will do much more to elevate AAPI voices and perspectives at the highest levels of government, including appointing an AAPI senior White House official to represent the community, secure the confirmation of AAPI appointments and advance policy proposals that are relevant and important to the community,” Duckworth spokesman Ben Garmisa said.
The White House did not immediately respond to questions about who might fill the role or whether it was a new position. The White House has for several years had a liaison to the AAPI community.
Before the White House’s decision, Biden was asked about Duckworth and Hirono’s comments in a brief exchange with reporters before he left Ohio to return to Washington on Tuesday night.
“We have the most diverse Cabinet in history,” Biden said. “We have…
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