Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) is responding to past tweets issued by President Joe Biden’s pick to be the director of the Office of Management and Budget, Neera Tanden, as she remains undecided on her nomination.
Washington Post reporter Seung Min Kim on Wednesday showed Murkowski one of Tanden’s tweets from 2017 where she slammed the senator for supporting the Republican tax law.
“No offense but this sounds like you’re high on your own supply,” Tanden wrote. “You know, we know, and everyone knows this is all garbage. Just stop.”
No offense but this sounds like you’re high on your own supply.
— Neera Tanden (@neeratanden) December 1, 2017
You know, we know, and everyone knows this is all garbage. Just stop. https://t.co/0MzDYCpDyc
Murkowski responded, “High on my own supply? That’s interesting.”
.@seungminkim showing Murkowski an old Tanden tweet targeting her
— Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) February 24, 2021
“High on my own supply? That’s interesting” pic.twitter.com/gdhaYpQuvf
Murkowski was surprised by the tweet, “That goes to show how much homework I still have to do about her if I didn’t even know that she sent out a tweet about me.”
She was asked if the tweet would affect her vote. Murkowski replied, “I suggested to the White House that my colleagues were being very critical of the statements, and rightly so and I think some of them were clearly over the top.”
Murkowski said, “It seems that in this world we’ve kind of gotten numb to derogatory tweets. I don’t think that that’s a model that we want to set for anybody whether it’s a nominee, whether it’s a President or whether it’s a senator. So I’d like us all to cool that.”
I asked if that tweet would affect her vote: "I suggested to the White House that my colleagues were being very critical of the statements, and rightly so and I think some of them were clearly over the top.” Says “we've kind of gotten numb to derogatory tweets” but shouldn’t
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) February 24, 2021
Warning sign for Neera Tanden. Murkowski, whose vote could seal her fate, is critical of past tweets. “I don't think that that's a model that we want to set for anybody whether it's a nominee, whether it's a president or whether it's a senator. So I'd like us all to cool that”
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) February 24, 2021
The senator said she still has “no decision” on Tanden yet.
Potential Senate Republican swing vote Murkowski says still "no decision" yet on Tanden
— Nicholas Wu (@nicholaswu12) February 24, 2021
per the Hill pool
According to reports, Murkowski has spoken to the White House about Tanden but not to the nominee herself. She said postponed committee votes allows her to have more time to consider Tanden and make a decision.
Sen. @lisamurkowski tells reporters she’s spoken to the White House about the Tanden nomination, but not yet to Tanden herself. She says postponed committee votes (comms she wasn’t on) gives her more time to review and make a decision. She wasn’t aware of Tanden tweet about her
— Garrett Haake (@GarrettHaake) February 24, 2021
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki weighed in Tanden during her press briefing on Wednesday as it appears Democrats may not be able to acquire the needed number of votes to confirm her, as IJR reported.
“There’s one nominee to lead the Budget department, her name’s Neera Tanden. And that’s who we’re continuing to fight for,” she said.
Psaki added, “We’re focused on fighting for the person the president has nominated.”
