At the end of January, the U.S. Senate began confirmation hearings for President Joe Biden's slate of Cabinet and Cabinet-level appointments. With a slim Democrat majority in the Senate, President Biden has significant power to staff the agencies of the executive branch as he sees fit. In turn, the Cabinet-level appointees will be essential in helping the Biden administration deliver on its ambitious policy agenda. On Jan. 20, Biden took office with zero of his 15 top Cabinet members confirmed by the Senate. This is fairly unusual. In comparison, former President Donald Trump took office in 2017 with two Cabinet members already confirmed, and former President Barack Obama had six confirmed Cabinet members on his Inauguration Day in 2009. As of this writing at press time, four Cabinet members had been confirmed: Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Secretary of Defense General Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines.
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