US President Joe Biden suffered his first delicate defeat in Congress. Nira Tandin’s candidacy for president has pulled his budget off because she ran into trouble over old tweets harshly attacking Republicans and Democrats alike.
The president decided to do so after Tanden, a former advisor to Hillary Clinton, abruptly withdrew on Tuesday. The Progressive Democrat is the first member of Biden’s envisaged cabinet lineup to die in the Senate, who must approve all appointments to top government positions.
The appointment of Tandin, like Vice President Kamala Harris of Indian descent, was crucial to Biden’s efforts to include many minorities in his government. But her appointment as head of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which is involved in preparing the budget, was a losing cause from the start. Republican senators, who in recent years have refused to convict President Donald Trump for his fierce tweets, have reacted like a bee to her nomination.
Many have not forgotten her tweets with personal attacks. Tandin, director of a progressive think-tank, has used the position in recent years to wage a fierce campaign against the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress. For example, in a tweet that Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell once described “Moscow Mitch” and “Voldemort”, the evil character from the Harry Potter series.
Personal attacks
Senator Susan Collins was “the worst” in Tanden’s view as his colleague Ted Cruz suffered. “Vampires have more feelings,” she tweeted about Cruz. Another Republican member of the Senate described them as a “charlatan.”
But the Democrats also haven’t escaped her personal attacks. Bernie Sanders, Clinton’s main opponent in 2016, once complained in a letter that Tandin had slandered his associates and supporters and “detracted” from his left-wing ideology.
Sanders called her comments “ mean ” at a hearing on her candidacy last month. Republican Senator John Kennedy said, “I described Senator Sanders all kinds of things, except for” an ignorant slut. ” Tandin tried to limit the damage before the hearings by deleting about a thousand old tweets.
She also wore burlap in the Senate. “I think the last few years have been very polarizing,” she said, referring to Trump’s tweets and attacks. I apologize for my language that contributed to this. I am sorry for all the pain he caused. ” But Toen’s apologies just couldn’t save her anymore.
Knockdown
Republican Senator John Cornyn described it as “radioactive.” Collins wasn’t convinced, either. “Her past actions have shown the kind of hostility President Biden has promised to overcome,” Collins said. However, the knockout came from a Democrat. After checking her tweets, fellow party member Joe Mansheen announced two weeks ago that she would vote against her candidacy.
Tandin couldn’t lose his support because the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate have 50 seats. According to Mansheen, her remarks will have a “toxic and detrimental effect” on Tandin’s relationship with Congress. Biden had hoped over the past few weeks that a Republican could be persuaded to vote for Tandin, but that did not materialize. Tanden’s removal of hundreds of offensive tweets was also of great interest to her.
“I don’t want my candidacy to distract from your other priorities,” she wrote in her farewell speech to Biden on Tuesday. He now wants to appoint her to another important White House position that does not require Senate approval. Some Democrats and the media accuse Republicans of double standards: not condemning Trump for his tweets, but condemning Tanden. The Washington Post asked, “Are Republicans upset now with sordid tweets?”
It is also indicated that Tandin is not the only Biden candidate from a minority strongly criticized by Republicans. “It’s measured by two criteria,” said Democratic Congressman Judy Chu. “That has to do with her being a pioneer in this position.”
