US Senate confirms Biden's first Cabinet nominee Avril Haines as director national intelligence

The US Senate on Wednesday (local time) confirmed Avril Haines for director of national intelligence making her the first official member of President Joe Biden.

The US Senate on Wednesday (local time) confirmed Avril Haines for director of national intelligence making her the first official member of President Joe Biden. According to a report by CNN, Haines' confirmation as the first woman to lead the US intelligence community, which was approved in the Senate by 84 to 10, continues a recent Senate precedent of confirming Cabinet nominees the day a new president is sworn in, though Biden is getting fewer nominees approved quickly than his predecessors.

Meanwhile, two of former President Donald Trump's have been confirmed by the Senate and several from President Barack Obama and George W. Bush. Haines, who has earned bipartisan praise, served in several national security positions under the Obama administration, including deputy CIA director and White House deputy national security adviser, The Hill reported.

During her opening statement, she pledged to keep the intelligence department away from the politics and said, "To be effective, the director of national intelligence must never shy away from speaking truth to power, even, especially, when doing so may be inconvenient or difficult." Following the confirmation, Biden took to Twitter to laud the Senate for confirming Haines as director of national intelligence.

"I applaud the Senate for putting partisanship aside to prioritize our national security. Americans can rest easy tonight knowing Avril Haines has been confirmed as the Director of National Intelligence," he said. 

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