Former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday, making the new head of the Energy Department the latest member of Joe Biden’s cabinet to be confirmed. 14 Republicans broke with their party to join the 50 Senate Democrats in supporting her nomination through a 64-35 vote.
Joining the Biden administration, Granholm is expected to help lead the administration’s push toward full carbon neutrality by 2050. Tweeting after her nomination, she shared that she is “obsessed” with creating clean-energy jobs that will be available across the country.
My sincere thanks to the Senate for your confidence in me. I’m obsessed with creating good-paying clean energy jobs in all corners of America in service of addressing our climate crisis. I’m impatient for results. Now let’s get to work!
— Jennifer Granholm (@JenGranholm) February 25, 2021
Sharing support for her predecessor, current Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer stated, “Congratulations to Secretary Granholm. Our former Governor will be a visionary leader at the Department of Energy and continue her passionate, decades-long advocacy for clean energy. She is also breaking barriers once again, as only the second woman to serve as Secretary of Energy after two terms as Michigan’s first female Governor. President Biden’s Cabinet is shaping up to the most diverse in our nation’s history, providing women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ+ a presence in the rooms where decisions are made. I look forward to working with Secretary Granholm as she addresses climate change, tackles the transition to clean energy, and works to build a more sustainable future. We have a lot to do, and together, we will.”
THE NOW CONFIRMED SECRETARY GRANHOLM
Entering the Department of energy, Granholm will be tasked with overseeing a multitude of factors, including the country’s nuclear weapons stockpile, an aspect of national security that she shared would be a major focus for her priorities ring her confirmation.
While Republicans have expressed anger and fear over both her Biden’s interest in moving toward a more Green economy, Granholm’s time will not be a death blow to the oil and natural gas industry. Pressed during her hearing, she shared support toward using still-developing carbon capture and storage technology to produce fossil fuels in a cleaner matter.
Granholm joins Biden’s cabinet’s current roster that includes already confirmed figures such as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
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