Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, a key centrist swing vote, said Wednesday that he will vote to confirm Deb Haaland to be President Biden’s interior secretary, likely paving her way to confirmation.
“While we do not agree on every issue, she reaffirmed her strong commitment to bipartisanship, addressing the diverse needs of our country, and maintaining our nation’s energy independence,” said Manchin, the chairman of the Senate energy committee, which held her confirmation hearing Tuesday and Wednesday.
Manchin’s vote to confirm is notable since he has already vowed to oppose one of Biden’s nominees, Neera Tanden, to be the director of the Office of Management and Budget.
He was noncommittal to Haaland before her confirmation hearing. Republicans have lined up in opposition to Haaland because of previous statements that she has made opposing fossil fuel development.
During her hearing, Haaland seemed determined to moderate her positions to appease Manchin, who represents West Virginia, a major coal and natural gas state, knowing he’d be key to her success in a split 50-50 Senate.
“We will absolutely rely on the fossil energy,” Haaland said Tuesday after previously stating, when she was a congresswoman representing New Mexico, that she was “wholeheartedly against fracking and drilling on public lands.”
