Democrats Back Off Vow to Block Biden Nominees Over Diversity Concerns
- Duckworth praises ‘administration’s assurances’ in statement
- Hirono supported Duckworth threat; both are pivotal in Senate
Senator Tammy Duckworth
Photographer: Ting Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Two Democratic senators backed off their threat to vote against all of President Joe Biden nominees who are White and heterosexual after they received assurances that his administration would bolster its efforts to select Asian-Americans or Pacific Islanders for executive branch positions.
Tammy Duckworth of Illinois was joined in her initial pledge by Senator Mazie Hirono, a Hawaii Democrat. Losing their votes could jeopardize the confirmation of Biden nominees in an evenly divided Senate.