■ The Senate confirmed Antony Blinken as America’s 71st secretary of state.

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Tuesday confirmed Antony Blinken as America’s top diplomat, tasked with carrying out President Joe Biden’s commitment to reverse the Trump administration’s “America First” doctrine that weakened international alliances.

Senators voted 78-22 to approve Blinken, a longtime Biden confidant, as the nation’s 71st secretary of state, succeeding Mike Pompeo. It is the most senior Cabinet position, with the secretary fourth in the line of presidential succession.

Blinken, 58, served as deputy secretary of state and deputy national security adviser during the Obama administration.

He has pledged to be a leading force in the administration’s bid to reframe the U.S. relationship with the rest of the world after four years in which President Donald Trump questioned longtime alliances.

Shortly after his confirmation, Blinken took the oath of office at a private ceremony at the State Department. He was sworn in by the director general of the U.S. Foreign Service in the Treaty Room on the department’s seventh floor outside the corridor known as “Mahogany Row,” where his new office will be. Blinken is expected to start work Wednesday.

Also, Janet Yellen, sworn in Tuesday as the nation’s 78th Treasury secretary and the first woman to hold the office, said in a message to the department’s 84,000 employees that they would play a major role in addressing the country’s biggest economic challenges.

She was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris at a ceremony performed outside on the East Wing entrance to the White House in view of the department Yellen will now lead.

Meanwhile, Biden’s pick to oversee the Commerce Department, Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo, took a tough line on China in her confirmation hearing Tuesday, though she stopped short of singling out which Chinese companies should remain on a list that limits their access to advanced U.S. technology.