Senate confirms Blinken AS Secretary of State

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Joe Biden’s nominee, veteran diplomat Antony Blinken, to serve as secretary of state. The 100-member Senate backed Blinken 78-22, meaning he could be sworn in as the nation’s top diplomat later in the day. A simple majority was needed in the democratic-controlled chamber for his confirmation. Blinken is a longtime Biden confidant who has been confirmed by the u.s. Senate before, most recently to serve as No. 2 at the State department during former democratic president Barack Obama’s administration, when Biden was vice-president. At his confirmation before the Senate Foreign relations Committee lats week, Blinken pledged to work more closely with allies after former president donald Trump’s “America First” approach to foreign affairs.