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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Joe Biden’s presidential campaign on Saturday added former Democratic primary rival Pete Buttigieg, along with senior officials who served under Barack Obama, to an expanded White House transition team.
Biden added four new co-chairs to the team led by his longtime ally Ted Kaufman: New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Obama’s former economic adviser Jeffrey Zients, Louisiana Rep. Cedric Richmond and his campaign adviser Anita Dunn.
He also appointed Buttigieg, a military veteran and former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, to the advisory board, along with former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, and Susan Rice, Obama’s national security adviser who was on the short list to be the partner. of Biden’s formula. .
“We are preparing for this transition amid the backdrop of a global health crisis and a struggling economy,” Kaufman said. “This is a transition like no other, and the team that is being formed will help Joe Biden meet the urgent challenges facing our country today.” one.”
Kaufman said the expertise of the advisory board members will help Biden respond to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which continues to devastate the United States, and the economic downturn.
Former surgeon general Vivek Murthy, who has been advising Biden on responding to the pandemic, has also joined the transition team.
Zients was tasked with taking over after the failed launch of the Obamacare enrollment website in 2013. Lujan Grisham has a background in health and aging and has led his state’s coronavirus response.
Other new members of the transition team include Teresa Romero, president of the United Farm Workers, Lonnie Stephenson, president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and Tony Allen, president of the historically black Delaware State University.
(Reporting by Valerie Volcovici; Editing by Tom Brown)
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