Joe Biden

Confirmation Hearing for Biden's National Intelligence Chief Abruptly Postponed

A Senate aide said they do not expect this to “significantly delay the confirmation process" for Avril Haines

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The first confirmation hearing for one of President-elect Joe Biden’s crucial cabinet posts has been abruptly rescheduled, the ranking members of the Senate Intelligence Committee said on Thursday.

Biden announced in November that Avril Haines, who held top national security jobs under former President Barack Obama, would become his director of national intelligence in his administration. The virtual hearing was scheduled for Friday but was postponed, NBC News reports.

A Republican Senate aide told NBC News that there is no rescheduled date yet for the postponed hearing, but the delay occurred in part because members wanted to be able to attend in person. The aide said they do not expect this to “significantly delay the confirmation process.” Another aide said the Senate hopes to hold the hearing on Tuesday.

Having served under Obama as a national security lawyer and deputy CIA director, Haines, 51, has been playing a key national security role in the Biden transition. She will become the first woman in the DNI job, which was created after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to better coordinate the sprawling American intelligence bureaucracy.

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Source: Staff reports

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