The White House continues to back Neera Tanden, Biden's pick to oversee the Office of Management and Budget, despite criticism from Republicans about her tweets that have been critical of conservatives.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki was asked during a press briefing Tuesday if there were other people in consideration for the position, and she said there is only "one candidate" and that is Tanden.

"She has had 44 meetings now with senators of both parties, she's spoken with 15 senators from both parties since Friday," Psaki said. "Some of those were repeats of people she had spoken with previously but, as I noted yesterday, she's committed to rolling up her sleeves, having those conversations, answering questions as they come up, reiterating her commitment to working with people across the aisle."

The Senate has confirmed Linda Thomas-Greenfield, a retired career ambassador and former top U.S. diplomat for Africa, as ambassador to the United Nations. The final vote was 78-20, with top Republicans, like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, voting in favor.

Thomas-Greenfield is the eighth official and the first Black woman confirmed to Biden's Cabinet. The U.S. will assume the presidency of the U.N. Security Council on Monday for the month of March, and Thomas-Greenfield will now be in place for that term, as the U.S. sets the agenda for the U.N.'s highest body.

Her nomination had been held up by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who accused Thomas-Greenfield of "moving towards and embracing the Chinese Communist Party" because of a speech she gave at a historically Black college in Georgia that was co-hosted by its Confucius Institute, a Chinese government-funded program that promotes the CCP as part of a language and cultural curriculum. However, Thomas-Greenfield said she regrets accepting the invitation and would not do it again, adding she was "appalled" by the Confucius Institute's treatment of poor Black Georgians.

-ABC News' Conor Finnegan

Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel to Houston, Texas, on Friday, the White House announced.

The president will visit the state in the aftermath of the catastrophic winter storm that left millions of Texas residents without power and water and killed at least 30 people in the state.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said last week that the president was considering a trip but was cognizant of the burden and additional resources that a presidential visit can bring.

Biden has already approved a major disaster declaration for the state, opening up federal funds to 77 of the state's 254 counties.

-ABC News' Justin Gomez

On the second day of Judge Merrick Garland's confirmation hearing, the nominee will not testify but five witnesses will testify virtually about his nomination and credentials. Those witnesses include Wade Henderson, CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Josh Blackman, South College Texas of law professor, Andrea Tucker, a mother in D.C., whose twin children Garland tutors, Ken Starr, former solicitor general and U.S. circuit judge, and Donna Bucella, former director for Executive Office of U.S. attorneys.

Garland emerged virtually unscathed after Monday's hearing, earning praise from senators on both sides of the aisle as he fielded questions on domestic terrorism, racial justice issues and restoring independence to the Justice Department, among other topics.

Republican Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Tom Cotton, R-Ark., did express concern over what they described as Garland's unwillingness to pledge that he will not fire special counsel John Durham without proper cause, a commitment they note former attorney general William Barr made during his confirmation hearing about then-special counsel Robert Mueller.

Garland repeatedly emphasized that because he had no knowledge of Durham's investigation he wanted to meet with him first before making a decision but said that because Durham hasn't yet been fired in the new administration he sees no reason to doubt that decision.

Other Republicans, like Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., appeared to grow frustrated over Garland's unwillingness to engage on questions about his views on immigration policy. Garland said he was not completely aware of Biden's immigration policy proposals so declined to wade into the issue.

-ABC News' Alexander Mallin

Asked by Judiciary Chairman Sen. Dick Durbin whether the Jan. 6 insurrection was a "one-off" domestic terrorism event, Garland said he didn't think it was, citing comments by FBI Director Chris Wray who has outlined the rise in threat of domestic terrorism in recent years.

Garland said he agreed that we are currently facing "a more dangerous period" than the nation faced when he was overseeing the investigation of the Oklahoma City bombing. He said while he has no inside information about the department's investigation into the Capitol rioters, he said "it looks like an extremely aggressive and perfectly appropriate beginning to an investigation" adding it will be his first priority and first briefing upon his return to the department if he's confirmed.

Asked about the Trump Administration's child separations, Garland said the policy was "shameful" and said he would ensure cooperation from Justice Department into the committee's investigation of the policy.

"I can't imagine anything worse than tearing parents from their children and we will provide all the cooperation we possibly can," Garland said.

Garland was asked whether he will let special counsel John Durham finish his investigation, Garland said he had no information on it but has no reason from what he currently knows to believe Durham should be removed. Garland said it will be among his first briefings upon confirmation as Attorney General.

Garland declined to answer a question from Grassley about whether he will commit to defending the death sentence penalties for certain individuals like the Boston marathon bomber, noting they are pending cases.

Grassley also asked whether Garland had any discussions with Biden about the investigation into Hunter Biden.

"I have not. The president made abundantly clear in every public statement before and after my nomination that the decisions about investigations and prosecutions will be left to the justice department," Garland said. "That was the reason that I was willing to take on this job, and so the answer to your question is no."

-ABC News' Alexander Mallin