President-elect Joe Biden pushed back on the idea that he was merely building a “third Obama term” with his cabinet picks so far during an interview with NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt.

Speaking with Biden on Tuesday night, the NBC News host noted all the “familiar faces” in his administration’s announced cabinet officials, many of whom held key deputy positions during the Obama-Biden presidency.

“What do you say to those who are wondering if you’re trying to create a third Obama term?” Holt asked.

“This is not a third Obama term because we face a totally different world than we faced in the Obama-Biden administration,” Biden said. “President Trump has changed the landscape. it’s become America First. it’s been America alone. we find ourselves in a position where our alliances are being frayed. It’s a totally — that’s why I’ve found people who join the administration and keep points that represent the spectrum of the American people as well as the spectrum of the Democratic Party.”

Holt then asked if Biden would consider appointing a Republican who publicly supported and voted for Trump in a key administration post.

“Yes,” Biden replied. “We still have a lot more appointments to make. I want this country to be united. The purpose of our administration is once again uniting. We can’t keep this virulent political dialogue going. It has to end.”

But when Holt pressed for a timetable on an announcement of a GOP cabinet appointee, Biden firmly pushed back:  “Not soon.”

He likewise expressed caution about filling key cabinet posts with Democratic members of Congress, since the party has a narrow majority in the House and would have a bare, 50-plus-VP-tiebreaker majority if it wins both Senate runoff elections in Georgia in January.

“What about former rivals from your own party? Bernie Sanders. Elizabeth Warren. have you talked to them about cabinet positions?” Holt asked.

“Well, I’ve talked to them,” Biden acknowledged. “We already have significant representation among progressives in our administration, but there’s nothing really off the table. But one thing is really critical. Taking someone out of the Senate, taking someone out of the House, particularly for a person of consequence, is a really difficult decision that would have to be made. I have a very ambitious, very progressive agenda. and it’s going to take really strong leaders in the House and Senate to get it done.”

Watch the video above, via NBC News.

The post 'This Is Not a Third Obama Term': Biden Pushes Back at NBC's Lester Holt When Asked About 'Familiar Faces' in His Cabinet first appeared on Mediaite.

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