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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden's nominee for secretary of transportation, Pete Buttigieg, appears on a smooth path to quick confirmation. At his confirmation hearing Thursday, he pledged to help carry out the administration's ambitious agenda to rebuild the nation's infrastructure. Buttigieg pointed to a "generational opportunity" to create new jobs, fight economic inequality and stem climate change. He promised more conversations with Congress, saying it will require significant investments in the months to come. Republican Sen. Roger Wicker chaired the hearing for a last time as the Senate finalized its transfer of power to Democrats. He said he was "quite certain" that Buttigieg will be confirmed.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s nominee for secretary of transportation, Pete Buttigieg, is pledging to carry out the administration’s ambitious agenda to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure. In prepared remarks for a Senate hearing on Thursday, Buttigieg says that implementing Biden's vision is a “generational opportunity” to create new jobs, fight economic inequality and stem climate change, with the Transportation Department playing a central role. The 39-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and former Democratic presidential candidate pledges to work closely with senators to deliver what he calls “the innovation and growth that America needs.”