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Former Biden official Neera Tanden, who testified before Congress Tuesday as part of an investigation into his mental acuity, has a long history as a Democratic operative and fell short of being appointed to Biden’s Cabinet due to her past controversial social media posts.
“I had no experience in the White House that would provide any reason to question his command as president,” Tanden told the House Oversight Committee in her opening statement Tuesday behind closed doors. “He was in charge.”
She added that her “cooperation” with the House committee’s investigation “should not be taken to mean” that she believes it is a “worthy subject of oversight” before pivoting to the Trump administration and making multiple allegations.
Tanden was initially nominated by Biden to head the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) before the nomination was withdrawn over a lack of congressional support for her and after criticism over some of her past posts on Twitter, now known as X.
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Leaders from both sides of the political spectrum called out Tanden for personal attacks and statements she has made on social media.
Those statements included calling Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, “the worst” and Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., a “fraud,” saying that “vampires have more heart than Ted Cruz” and referring to then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., as “Moscow Mitch” and “Voldemort,” referring to the Harry Potter villain.
Tanden deleted more than 1,000 of her past tweets ahead of her confirmation hearing.
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Additionally, committee Chairman Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said at the time he was worried about the millions of dollars the Center for American Progress (CAP) has received from large corporations and special interest groups. Tanden returned to CAP in February to take over her previous role as the left-wing think tank’s president and CEO.
“Tanden, Biden’s nominee to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), disclosed earning $731,528 from the Center for American Progress (CAP) for the last two years, along with thousands in investments and speaking fees, according to the documents,” Fox News Digital previously reported. “That amounts to about $365,000 a year.”
Tanden previously described CAP’s mission as becoming the “central hub of the Trump resistance.”
A longtime Democratic operative, Tanden worked on former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s two presidential campaigns. Under former President Obama, she also helped draft the Affordable Care Act legislation as an advisor to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Tanden also repeatedly pushed the Russia collusion narrative about Donald Trump and repeatedly hyped the discredited Steele dossier as credible evidence. At one point, Tanden referred to Steele on social media as “the next James Bond.”
After her nomination was withdrawn, the president vowed to find a place for Tanden in his administration, one without the requirement of Senate approval, which ended up being senior advisor to the president and later White House staff secretary.
Tanden met with the House Oversight Committee behind closed doors Tuesday as it probes whether those closest to Biden in his White House knowingly colluded to hide the former president’s declining mental acuity and used methods to circumvent the former president when it came to the issuance of important orders.
A House Oversight Committee aide told Fox News “Neera Tanden told investigators during her transcribed interview today that from 2021 to 2023 she was authorized to direct autopen signatures. It was a system inherited from previous administrations. She also said Biden was in charge,” according to an X post from Fox News’ Chad Pergram.
President Donald Trump also ordered the Department of Justice to open an investigation into the matter. The president directed Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House counsel David Warrington to handle the investigation.
In response to the Trump administration’s call for an investigation, Biden declared he was the only one who “made the decisions” during his presidency and called Trump’s efforts a “distraction.”
Fox News Digital’s David Montanaro, Elizabeth Elkind, and Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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