Secretary of State nominee Antony Blinken speaks at the Queen’s Theatre in Wilmington, Delaware, Nov. 24, 2020.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a confirmation hearing for President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for secretary of state, Antony Blinken, on Jan. 19, just one day before Biden’s inauguration.
Blinken served as the Democratic chief of staff on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 2002 to 2008. He then served as permanent deputy secretary of state and national security adviser to the vice president in the Obama administration from 2009 to 2013, and has worked with Biden for nearly 20 years. On Nov. 23, 2020, Biden again worked with Blinken on his nomination to serve as U.S. secretary of state.
The first hearing in the Senate confirmation process usually consists of an introduction by someone who knows the nominee, remarks by Blinken himself and statements by committee members. Once the confirmation process moves to questioning, Blinken is likely to face questions about his role at WestExec Advisors, a strategic advisory firm. Blinken founded the firm in 2017 after leaving the Obama administration.
Avril Haines, who was appointed by Biden as director of national intelligence, also worked for WestExec Advisors.
At least one senator has now indicated that Blinken and Haines may be required to answer questions about West Politics Consulting during their confirmation meetings.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) tweeted on Nov. 29, 2020, that “the Senate has no obligation to confirm anyone who hides this information.”
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) tweeted on Nov. 30, 2020, “America is not stronger or safer if its foreign policy and national security institutions are led by people who just got paid to help American companies do business with the Communist Party of China.”
West Politics Consulting recently removed portions of its Web site that advertised that the company could help U.S. universities raise money from China without affecting Defense Department research funding. One of the removed descriptions said, “West Politics Consulting can advise on strategies to screen foreign research partners and donors, reduce the risk of doing business in China” and “guide the Department of Defense on these issues.”
According to the Washington Free Beacon, a Western Consulting spokesman said, “The firm has previously offered services to U.S. research universities to help them avoid inadvertent relationships with the Chinese (Communist) government.” The firm still lists “managing China-related risks in an era of strategic competition” as one of its services.
It has helped a major U.S. manufacturing company consistently provide (cooperation) capabilities and maintain trusted partnerships (relationships) to the (U.S. government) while doing business in China, and “the firm (West Consulting) provided advice on communication strategies for engaging with U.S. national security officials,” West Consulting said.
Currently, Democrats and Republicans hold half of the Senate seats, with incumbent Vice President Mike Pence holding the key votes, although Democrats will likely have control of the Senate by the time of the confirmation vote.
In addition, three Republican senators had requested documents on Blinken in 2019, and according to the lawmakers, Blinken has ties to Hunter Biden, who contacted Blinken in 2015 after joining the board of directors of Ukrainian gas giant Burisma, asking him to “advise on a number of things.” According to an email obtained by Fox News, Blinken replied “absolutely,” but the meeting does not appear to have taken place as scheduled.
On Feb. 4, 2016, Ukraine’s top prosecutor seized the assets of Brisma owner Mykola Zlochevsky. On the same day, Hunter followed Blinken on Twitter.
According to Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the action could be a sign that Blinken and Biden are reaching out to each other. Grassley is one of three senators who requested the Blinken documents in 2019.
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