Biden suffers first cabinet defeat, pulls Neera Tanden nomination for White House budget chief

The US president was forced to withdraw the nomination amid opposition from both Democrats and Republicans over tweets she had written

The setback comes amid growing recognition that substantial political power now rests in the hands of moderates

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US President Joe Biden withdrew his nomination for Neera Tanden as White House budget director after resistance from key senators over her past tweets. Photo: AFP

Published: 1:15pm, 3 Mar 2021Updated: 1:15pm, 3 Mar 2021

US President Joe Biden suffered his first cabinet defeat on Tuesday as he pulled an ill-fated nomination, the clearest signal yet that immensely powerful moderates in the deadlocked Senate can imperil his administration’s ambitious agenda.

Biden was forced to abandon his push to make Neera Tanden the White House budget director after centrists on both sides of the political aisle made it clear they would not support her.

The opposition centred around several of Tanden’s previous tweets in which she disparaged lawmakers.

“I have accepted Neera Tanden’s request to withdraw her name from nomination for Director of the Office of Management and Budget,” Biden said in a statement. “I have the utmost respect for her record of accomplishment, her experience and her counsel, and I look forward to having her serve in a role in my administration.”

The 50-year-old Tanden, who heads a progressive think tank, wrote to the president to say she was withdrawing because she did not want debate over her nomination to be “a distraction from your other priorities”.