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Democracy Now!
Amy Goodman

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Biden Taps Pete Buttigieg for Transportation Secretary, Jennifer Granholm for Energy Secretary

HeadlineDec 16, 2020

President-elect Joe Biden has picked former South Bend, Indiana, mayor and presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg to be secretary of transportation. If confirmed, Buttigieg will be the first openly gay Cabinet member in U.S. history. As transportation secretary, he will oversee an agency with nearly 60,000 employees and a budget of over $72 billion. As mayor of South Bend, Buttigieg ran a city with a population of just 100,000 people. During his presidential run, Buttigieg pushed for expanded funding for public transportation but also more money for highways and driverless cars. Buttigieg previously worked as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company.

Biden is also set to nominate former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm to be secretary of energy. Granholm has been a longtime advocate of renewable energy.

Biden is also reportedly planning to tap former EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy to oversee his domestic climate policy.

Meanwhile, Politico reports Biden has quietly expanded his transition team to include veterans from Goldman Sachs, McKinsey & Company, Facebook and Google.

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