Neera Tanden Withdraws from OMB Nomination, Biden’s First Defeat

WENDELL HUSEBO

Neera Tanden withdrew her nomination for Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Tuesday evening.

Dear President Biden,

I am writing to you to withdraw my nomination for Director of the Office of Management and Budget. It has been an honor of a lifetime to be considered for this role and for the faith placed in me. I appreciate how hard you and your team at the White House has worked to win my confirmation. Unfortunately, it now seems clear that there is no path forward to gain confirmation, and I do not want continued consideration of my nomination to be a distraction from your other priorities.I am incredibly grateful for your leadership on behalf of the American people and for your agenda that will make such a transformative difference in people’s lives.

Sincerely,

Neera Tanden

The White House confirmed the withdrawal.

Tanden was facing bipartisan opposition from senators due to past comments she made on her Twitter feed.

The news breaks as Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said she met with Tanden on Monday. Murkowski acknowledged she had not made a decision and was still doing her “assessment.”

Tanden reached out to senators after her confirmation was harpooned by Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (D-VT) tough line of questioning and Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-WV) revealed “no” vote against her.

Tanden has met with 35 senators on both sides of the aisle, according to a source involved with the confirmation process.