Democrat Joe Biden is expected to nominate former Assistant Secretary of State Linda Thomas-Greenfield as ambassador to the United Nations, Axios has reported.
The decision is in line with Biden's promise to name a diverse Cabinet.
Thomas-Greenfield, who is Black, served as assistant secretary of state for African affairs between 2013 and 2017, and has since served as senior counselor for the consulting agency Albright Stonebridge Group, according to The Hill.
She was a foreign service officer dating back to the administration of President Ronald Reagan and was one of many career professionals pushed aside when President Donald Trump came into office, CBS News reported.
She is expected to focus on helping to restore trust and professionalism to the State Department.
In the current issue of Foreign Affairs magazine, Thomas-Greenfield, along with fellow seasoned diplomat William J. Burns, wrote an article on how to save the State Department, stating that during Trump's presidency "career public servants who worked on controversial issues during the Obama administration, such as the Iran nuclear negotiations, have been smeared and attacked, their careers derailed."
To solve the problem, they wrote, the U.S. "needs a top-to-bottom diplomatic surge. The Trump administration's unilateral diplomatic disarmament is a reminder that it is much easier to break than to build. The country doesn't have the luxury of waiting for a generational replenishment, marking time as new recruits slowly work their way up the ranks."
Biden transition team officials have said that a formal announcement of several Cabinet picks is expected in the next few days, according to Axios.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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