Another point of contention was opposition to some of his cabinet nominations, which were sometimes bipartisan. However, Biden made it clear on Wednesday that he did not blame the Senate for delayed confirmations.
“I blame the failure to make a rational transition,” Biden told reporters after his comments. “As you know, previous administrations had a significant number of their Cabinet confirmed before they even took office. That is the tradition. ”
President and Vice President Kamala Harris met with eight senators and three members of the House earlier in the day. The group discussed supply chain issues that caused problems, such as the scarcity of semiconductor chips and personal protective equipment needed by healthcare professionals working on the front lines of the pandemic.
Senator John Cornyn and Representative Michael McCaul, both Republicans from Texas, echoed Biden’s comments, describing the meeting to reporters outside the West Wing as “very good” and “very positive”.
“The president was very responsive, as was the vice president,” said Cornyn. “He said, ‘We’re all in.’ We all understand that this is important, not just for our economy, but for our national security, because these next-generation and next-generation semiconductors – they operate on everything from the fifth generation F-35 stealth fighter to our cell phones. So it was very positive. “
Cornyn added that the group did not address the Covid-19 aid package during the meeting.
McCaul said he was pleased that the president considered the issue “a high priority” and praised Biden for raising the issue “in the first four weeks of his presidency”.
Other Republicans present were Sens. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Mike Braun of Indiana and Rob Portman of Ohio, as well as Rep. John Joyce of Pennsylvania. Of the Democrats, the Sens. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, as well as Rep. Doris Matsui of California, were also present.