Budget nominee Neera Tanden withdraws nomination amid opposition

WASHINGTON (NewsNation Now) — President Joe Biden’s pick to head the Office of Management and Budget, Neera Tanden, has withdrawn her nomination.

President Biden said in a statement released by the White House that he has accepted her request to withdraw, and looks forward to Tanden serving in some kind of role in the Biden administration.

“I have accepted Neera Tanden’s request to withdraw her name from nomination for Director of the Office of Management and Budget. I have the utmost respect for her record of accomplishment, her experience and her counsel, and I look forward to having her serve in a role in my Administration. She will bring valuable perspective and insight to our work.”

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN

Her withdrawal marks the first high-profile defeat of one of Biden’s nominees. Eleven of the 23 Cabinet nominees requiring Senate approval have been confirmed, most with strong bipartisan support.

Tanden’s chances of confirmation seemed increasingly unlikely after multiple senators said they would not vote to confirm her, including Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and a number of moderate Republicans. Tanden’s past negative statements about various members of Congress came under scrutiny during her confirmation hearings.

Tanden needed just 51 votes in an evenly-divided Senate, with Vice President Kamala Harris acting as a tiebreaker. But without Manchin’s support, the White House was left scrambling to find a Republican to support her.

“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,” Tanden wrote in a letter to Biden. The president, in a statement, said he has “utmost respect for her record of accomplishment, her experience and her counsel” and pledged to find her another role in his administration.

Read Tanden’s full letter to Biden withdrawing her nomination:

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 Associated Press contributed to this report