Senate confirms Xavier Becerra as head of Health and Human Services Department
18 March 2021
The Senate voted 50-49 on Thursday to confirm Xavier Becerra as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Why it matters: Becerra, the first Latino to lead the department, is now in charge of overseeing the country's response to the coronavirus pandemic while executing much of the Biden administration's health agenda.
Context: Becerra was one of President Biden's most controversial nominees. He sued the Trump administration more than 100 times while attorney general for the state of California, and Republicans, who largely opposed the confirmation, said he was not qualified for the job.
- To advance Becerra's nomination, the full Senate voted last week to bypass the Finance Committee, which had become deadlocked over his nomination.
- Republicans have criticized his lack of health care experience and his past support for Medicare for All and abortion, while Democrats were concerned that delays to confirming Becerra could hamper the U.S. pandemic response.
Of note: Becerra's confirmation also leaves another appointment up to California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.