Janet Yellen would be the first woman to command the Treasury Department 1:18
(CNN) ––
The president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden, revealed on Monday a list of his main selections in foreign policy and national security for his cabinet.
Among them, the first woman to lead the country's intelligence community and the first Latino to head the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Alejandro Mayorkas, of Cuban origin and former DHS deputy secretary, is Biden's designated head of the department.
You will be tasked with rebuilding the agency that executed some of the most draconian measures regarding President Donald Trump's hardline immigration policy.
Among them, the family separations on the border of the United States and Mexico.
Biden's choice to head national intelligence is Avril Haines, a former senior CIA official and Deputy National Security Advisor.
Haines will also make history if the Senate confirms it.
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Biden is moving quickly to establish his new administration.
Even despite current efforts by Trump to reverse the election results and hinder the transition.
CNN reported Monday that Biden is expected to appoint Janet Yellen as Secretary of the Treasury, according to a source with knowledge of the election.
Yellen would be the first woman to serve as Secretary of the Treasury if selected and confirmed.
The roster of selections announced Monday included Antony Blinken, Biden's top foreign policy adviser, as the next secretary of state.
Also from Linda Thomas-Greenfield as United States Ambassador to the United Nations.
Jake Sullivan will join the White House team as Biden's National Security Advisor.
Biden seeks a diverse cabinet
The elections reflect Biden's desire to build a diverse cabinet with well-versed public policy experts and deep government experience.
Former Secretary of State John Kerry has been chosen to serve as Biden's climate czar.
Kerry is an advocate for the Paris Climate Agreement.
Precisely, the historic pact from which Trump withdrew the United States.
Kerry was also chosen to co-chair a climate change "unity task force" with allies of Senator Bernie Sanders after the Democratic primary.
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In a statement, Biden described his cabinet selections as "the turning point" in a team tasked with reasserting US leadership on the world stage.
This, after Trump's efforts to nullify multilateral diplomacy and destroy fragile pacts like the nuclear deal with Iran.
"These people are as experienced and crisis-proof as they are innovative and imaginative," Biden said.
His achievements in diplomacy are unmatched.
But they also reflect the idea that we cannot meet the profound challenges of this new moment with old thinking and unchanged habits, or without a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives.
That is why I have selected them, "he added.
Two key women
The top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee immediately reached out to his Republican colleagues to confirm Haines.
"Avril is smart and capable, with an experience that will serve her as the Director of National Intelligence," said Virginia Sen. Mark Warner.
"Although I hope that he will face rigorous questioning by senators from both parties, the sooner we can obtain a confirmed Director of National Intelligence to begin to repair the damage that the last four years have caused to our intelligence agencies, the better," he added.
LOOK: Joe Biden announces his appointees to handle foreign policy and national security
Thomas-Greenfield is a career foreign service official.
And she was among the first victims of Trump's initial purge of professional diplomats in 2017. She served as undersecretary in the Office of African Affairs during the Obama administration.
She is also held in high regard among her fellow foreign policy professionals.
"My mother taught me to lead with the power of kindness and compassion to make the world a better place," Thomas-Greenfield tweeted after her appointment was announced.
“I have carried that lesson with me throughout my career in the Foreign Service.
And, if confirmed, I will do the same as ambassador to the United Nations, "he said.
Biden also announced that that position will be elevated to a cabinet-level role.
Which reverses Trump's decision to demote.
The designation for climate issues
Climate activists will also take note of the decision to install Kerry, as special presidential envoy for climate, on the National Security Council (NSC).
“This is the first time that the NSC will include an official dedicated to climate change.
This reflects the president-elect's commitment to addressing climate change as an urgent national security issue, ”Biden's transition team said in a statement announcing the selections.
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The challenge of Alejandro Mayorkas as part of the Biden cabinet
Taking over the Department of Homeland Security, Mayorkas faces the biggest challenge domestically.
The department was the implementing arm for some of Trump's most controversial programs.
Mayorkas' selection received initial endorsement from the former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Julián Castro.
Castro ran in the Democratic presidential primaries and has become a prominent advocate for immigrant rights.
"Alejandro Mayorkas is a historic and seasoned choice to lead an agency in desperate need of reform," Castro tweeted.
"As an immigrant and creator of the DACA program, he is prepared to undo the damage of Trump and build a more compassionate and common sense immigration agenda," he added.
In a couple of statements, the progressive group Justice Democrats and Sunrise Movement, a youth-led climate activist organization, praised Kerry's selection.
However, they continued to push for a new climate office in the White House to deal with national politics.
"We are encouraged that Joe Biden is making one of his first major appointments as John Kerry as climate czar, as he demonstrates the urgency of taking bold global action on the climate crisis," said Justice Democrats Executive Director Alexandra Rojas, CNN contributor.
"But the United States also needs a country-focused climate czar, who reports directly to the president and oversees an Office of Climate Mobilization agreed to in the Biden-Sanders working groups."
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