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Deb Haaland Confirmed As 1st Native American Interior Secretary

Deb Haaland, a member of New Mexico’s Laguna Pueblo, has become the first Native American Cabinet secretary in U.S. history.

The Senate voted 51-40 Monday to confirm the Democratic congresswoman to lead the Interior Department, an agency that will play a crucial role in the Biden administration’s ambitious efforts to combat climate change and conserve nature.

Her confirmation is as symbolic as it is historic. For much of its history, the Interior Department was used as a tool of oppression against America’s Indigenous peoples. In addition to managing the country’s public lands, endangered species and natural resources, the department is

Deb Haaland confirmed, becomes first Native American Cabinet member

WASHINGTON – The Senate has confirmed Deb Haaland as interior secretary, making her the first Native American to serve in a presidential Cabinet.

The vote was 51-40. All Democrats and a handful of Republicans voted to confirm her.

“Rep. Haaland’s confirmation represents a gigantic step forward in creating a government that represents the full richness and diversity of this country, because Native Americans were, for far too long, neglected at the Cabinet level and in so many other places,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor before the vote Monday evening.

For more than 171 years,

Deb Haaland confirmed, makes history as first Native American Cabinet member

The Senate on Monday confirmed Rep. Deb Haaland as interior secretary, making her the first Native American in U.S. history to serve in a president’s Cabinet.

Haaland, elected to the House of Representatives in 2018, earned the support of several key Republican senators despite early GOP opposition to her nomination. The vote was 51-40.

This isn’t be the first time Haaland has made history. She was also one of the first two female Native Americans in Congress. Haaland worked in New Mexico state politics before seeking federal office and is an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe.

Haaland

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