Politico: Sure looks like Biden botched FDA pick

[Nostra]

None, it would appear. Biden hasn't been forced to fire any of his picks for ethics violations, lying to the FBI. Nobody's been arrested or forced to resign because of illegal activities.

Trump lost 25% of his first picks in his first year in office to arrest, resignation under a cloud of scandal, inability to pass security clearances, ethics violations, and people who simply pissed him off, so he obviously was very bad at picking. Some were for ethics violations, some because they couldn't get security clearances, and others because they simply pissed Trump off.

He gave half of the important jobs to Jared because he hadn't hired anybody else to do them.

So, when I ask which of his picks he has not botched you say “none”.

You finally got something right, Dumbass.

 

[B. Kidd]

My God!
Donchya' all feel safer that Mayorkas flew thru as head of Homeland Security?
You're all reprobates (sic).

 

[1stNickD]

Why do you suddenly care how long it takes the President to fill a job? Trump left hundreds of jobs vacant throughout his term, jobs more critical than the FDA, which doesn’t need a political appointee to ensure its work continues.

All this says to me is that you have precious little to complain about with President Biden, so you make up childish nicknames about him and pick at every teeny tiny thing you find.

You’re like a petulant little child with this Brandon thing. Do you think if you make up childish nicknames for President Biden that his job creation numbers will go away, his GDP numbers will go away, or his stock market gains will go away?

Every day, as things get better and better in the US, the hysterical screaming from the right gets louder and louder.

better and better? You really are enjoying that legal weed, aren't you?

 

[basquebromance]

Biden’s FDA pick makes major ethics pledges to win over Elizabeth Warren

The Massachusetts Democrat is agreeing to back Biden’s FDA pick after he put restrictions on the work he’d do and employment he’d seek.

www.politico.com

excerpts:

Robert Califf, who was first nominated more than two months ago, is agreeing to not seek employment or compensation from any pharmaceutical or medical device company that he interacts with “for four years” following his time in government, according to a letter he sent to the Massachusetts Democrat and obtained by POLITICO.

A spokesperson for Warren said that, should Califf’s nomination ultimately come to a vote, the Massachusetts Democrat plans to support him.

In the letter, Califf also agreed to a four-year period in which he will recuse himself from decisions before the agency related to companies with which he had relationships. Originally, the recusal period was two years.

an administration official defended Califf’s ethical track record, noting that he was confirmed by an 89-to-4 vote to lead the FDA during the Obama administration. At that time, Warren requested to see all research contracts between pharmaceutical companies and the Duke Clinical Research Institute founded by Califf. She subsequently voted for Califf.

The Massachusetts Democrat, who has pushed other Biden appointees to adopt stronger ethical standards, was among a handful of Democrats concerned by Califf’s $2.7 million paycheck for advising the Alphabet-owned Verily Life Sciences. That work, along with board seats Califf held on two other pharmaceutical companies, came after he served as FDA commissioner in the Obama administration.

Warren’s support of Califf’s nomination doesn’t ensure his confirmation. Califf has struggled to win the support of the 50 senators he needs amid concerns over his past ties to the drug industry and regulatory track record on opioids. Already, five Democrats in the evenly divided Senate have signaled they’ll oppose him — with others so far refusing to commit either way.

Just four Republicans, meanwhile, have publicly backed his candidacy. And according to three people with knowledge of the matter, Califf has also failed to impress some key senators in one-on-one meetings, further complicating his candidacy.

The lack of bipartisan support has increasingly alarmed Califf’s supporters, who privately blamed the White House in recent weeks for being too detached from the efforts to secure his confirmation. Already, the FDA has gone more than a year without a permanent leader, despite being at the center of Biden's Covid-19 response and vaccination campaign.