Biden says his administration will be most diverse ever
Washington: US President-elect Joe Biden has said that his administration would be the most diverse than it has ever been both in the Cabinet and inside the White House.
Biden, 78, is due to take over as the 46th US President on January 20.
African-American groups have been asking Biden, a Democrat, to nominate one of them among the big four: Secretary of State, Treasury Secretary, Defence Secretary, and Attorney General.
It will be the most diverse Cabinet and the main spots in both White House as well as in cabinet positions, Biden told reporters on Friday when asked about various groups asking him to give representations to their sections of the society.
Look, it's each one of these groups' jobs to push, push their leaders to make sure there's greater diversity. What I can promise you is when this is all said and done, you'll see everyone that I've announced and there's going to be in the next several weeks, he said.
We'll have it all out there. You're going to see significant diversity. I'm not going to tell you now exactly what I'm going to do in any department, but I promise you it will be the single most diverse cabinet based on race, color, based on gender that ever existed in the United States of America, Biden said.
Congressman Gregory Meeks, who backs a strong US-India relationship, was on Thursday elected as the next chairman of the powerful House Foreign Affairs Committee, becoming the first African-American to head the Congressional panel that plays an influential role in shaping the country's foreign policy.
Biden's economic team includes Janet Yellen as the Treasury Secretary, Indian-American Neera Tanden as the Director of Office of Management and Budget, Wally Adeyemo the as Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, Cecilia Rouse as the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, and Jared Bernstein and Heather Boushey as members of the Council of Economic Advisers.
Biden has nominated Antony Blinken as the Secretary of State.
He is yet to finalize candidates for the posts of Defence Secretary and Attorney General.
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Modi targets Congress over 26/11 attacks, warns against INDIA bloc's 'mission cancel'
Ahmednagar/Beed (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday targeted the Congress over a senior leader's remarks on the 26/11 terror attacks and claimed if voted to power, the grand old party will reverse the Supreme Court verdict on Ram temple like it did in the 1985 Shah Bano case.
The BJP's star campaigner asserted the Congress's one point agenda on coming to power is to "cancel" landmark decisions taken by his government like scrapping Article 370, bringing a new citizenship Act, banning the instant triple talaq, and declared June 4, the day when votes polled in the Lok Sabha will be counted, will be the "expiry" date for the opposition INDIA bloc.
Addressing two poll rallies in Maharashtra in support of BJP-Shiv Sena candidates, Modi accused the Congress of playing a dangerous game of appeasement politics on 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, Ram temple and religion-based quota.
Speaking in Ahmednagar and Beed districts, the BJP stalwart hit out at the Congress over its Maharashtra leader Vijay Wadettiwar's comments that then-ATS chief Hemant Karkare was not killed by Pakistan terrorist Ajmal Kasab during the 26/11 attacks.
Quoting a senior Congress leader who recently resigned, the PM noted that "shehzada" (referring to Rahul Gandhi) had told a select group of people that if his party was voted to power, it will reverse the 2019 Supreme Court verdict on Ram temple like the Rajiv Gandhi government did in the 1985 Shah Bano case.
Modi asked people to be alert to Congress designs to "snatch" the SCs/ST/s/OBCs quota in jobs and education and give it to Muslims, saying this has been done in Karnataka, where the grand old party is in power.
The BJP stalwart maintained that while he is on a mission to realize the goal of Viksit Bharat (developed India), the INDIA alliance will be on a "mission cancel" if voted to power.
Modi claimed the opposition bloc will bring back Article 370 (which granted special status to J&K), restore instant triple talaq practice, scrap measures like the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), free ration for the poor, free medical treatment up to Rs 5 lakh for 55 crore poor people and pro-farmer steps such as Kisan Samman Nidhi.
"A former Congress leader has revealed that after the 2019 Supreme Court verdict on Ram mandir, 'shehzada' called a meeting and said if the Congress returns to power, it will overturn the Ram mandir ruling," the PM noted.
Speaking in Ahmednagar, Modi said June 4 will be the "expiry date" of the INDIA bloc.
"This grouping will disperse like sand. The Congress-led bloc is indulging in appeasement politics, while BJP-led NDA wants to make everyone happy. BJP-led NDA works for development, national security, welfare of the poor, self-respect of the nation, while the Congress manifesto has the Muslim League's stamp. The party has made false promises of poverty alleviation and betrayed the poor," he emphasised.
Modi pointed out that he has provided four crore homes to the poor, while 50 crore people have been brought in the banking system through the Jan Dhan scheme and 80 crore people are getting free ration.
In Beed, Modi noted the Congress neglected the arid Marathwada region for long, while his government worked on expediting irrigation projects and solving water scarcity issue.
At one point, the PM got emotional and recalled that in the last 10 years, he had lost party colleagues like Gopinath Munde (who hailed from Beed), Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley and Manohar Parrikar and was feeling their absence now.
Remembering BJP leader Gopinath Munde, who was a member of his first cabinet in 2014, Modi said, "He used to often discuss about development of Marathwada. I took people like Gopinath Munde to Delhi."
The PM warned the Congress wants to replicate the "Karnataka model" of reservation politics, which involves including Muslims in OBC quota, in the entire country.
"Till Modi is alive, no power in the world can take away reservation granted to Dalit, tribals and OBCs," he declared.
Modi said the "real" NCP and "real" Shiv Sena were with the BJP, while the 'nakli' (bogus) Shiv Sena and 'nakli' NCP were with the Congress.
"The Congress can only make 'nakli' promises and 'nakli' videos. Its agenda is that it will not work and not let others work. The Congress will stop the (Mumbai-Ahmedabad) bullet train project if it comes to power. Can we trust such anti-development people?" he asked.
He took a dig at the Congress over its stand on terrorism.
"It seems the Congress is maintaining some relationship with these people (terrorists). The country has not forgotten that terrorists were welcomed in the PM's residence (during Congress rule). A big Congress leader cried when terrorists were killed in Batla House encounter (in Delhi)," Modi noted.
Criticizing RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav over his remarks favouring quota for Muslims, Modi said, 'Another leader of INDI alliance said today morning that reservation that has been given to SCs/STs/ OBCs should be given to Muslims too. This is against Dalit and adivasis."
The state government led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, in which the BJP and the NCP are also allies, is bringing development projects in Marathwada, the PM said.
Shinde, Union minister Ramdas Athawale, Maharashtra minister Dhananjay Munde, BJP's Beed Lok Sabha candidate Pankaja Munde were present at the rally.
Voting in Ahmednagar, Shirdi and Beed seats will take place on May 13.
