Cabinet rumblings preview intra-party fights for Biden: Analysis
Intra-party rumblings about diversity and experience are more than background noise as Biden builds out his governing team. The relatively drama-free transition has masked concerns about whether Biden's decisions can meet his commitments -- with implications for governance after Jan. 20.
Biden's choice of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead Health and Human Services puts a Latino in a high-profile spot, though Biden's stumble over his last name wasn't the best introduction to the country.
Still, coming out of Biden's meeting with prominent Black leaders Tuesday night, some want Biden to create a new high-ranking advisory job -- and Black and Latino activists and advisers are focused on the attorney general's job as well.
The choice of Austin is also leaving Democrats worried about preserving civilian control over the Defense Department. For some, that will mean explaining why a Trump appointment of a recently retired general shouldn't have gotten a legal waiver to serve in the role, while a Biden one should.
Just last week, Biden re-set his high bar: "I promise you, it'll be the single most diverse Cabinet based on race, color, based on gender, that's ever existed in the United States of America," he told reporters.
He is making picks that move him in that direction. But the unity Democrats have found in opposing the Trump White House is showing signs of strain as names roll out -- to say nothing of policy.
-ABC News' Political Director Rick Klein