US President-elect Biden names White House communications team

WASHINGTON - US President-elect Joe Biden on Sunday announced the nomination of an all-female White House communications team, with Jen Psaki being the press secretary.

In addition to Psaki, who served as the spokesperson for the State Department and White House communications director during the administration of former President Barack Obama, Biden said his campaign spokesperson Kate Bedingfield was tapped as the White House communications director.

Pili Tobar, the communications director for coalitions for the Biden campaign, will be deputy communications director. Karine Jean-Pierre, who served as chief of staff to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris during the campaign, will assume the role of principal deputy press secretary, according to the announcement.

Other nominations include Symone Sanders, senior adviser and chief spokesperson for Harris; Ashley Etienne, the vice president-elect's communications director; and Elizabeth Alexander, the communications director for Jill Biden, the future first lady. The three of them all served senior advisory roles in the Biden campaign.

"Communicating directly and truthfully to the American people is one of the most important duties of a President, and this team will be entrusted with the tremendous responsibility of connecting the American people to the White House," Biden said in a statement.

"I am proud to announce today the first senior White House communications team comprised entirely of women. These qualified, experienced communicators bring diverse perspectives to their work and a shared commitment to building this country back better," said Biden.

Harris, for her part, said that the United States "is facing unprecedented challenges - from the coronavirus pandemic to the economic crisis, to the climate crisis, and a long-overdue reckoning over racial injustice," and that these nominees are able to help overcome these challenges.