The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is scheduled to vote on President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday morning – marking a consequential moment for the embattled nominee and the agency, which is attempting to address a slew of major challenges.
Phil Washington, whose nomination was first announced by Biden some eight months ago, has faced continued resistance from Republican lawmakers over issues that have emerged since he was nominated last summer, pressing him over a number of matters, including his slim aviation-related credentials.
Ahead of Wednesday’s committee vote, a steady stream of groups lined up for and against Washington.
Aviation worker unions, former transportation secretaries on both sides of the aisle, Denver-based Frontier Airlines and the family members of crash victims who died on Ethiopian Air Flight 302 have all endorsed Washington in the lead up to Wednesday’s vote.
Former Department of Transportation officials who served at the agency during the Trump administration signed onto a letter to the president expressing their opposition to Washington’s confirmation.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, the top-ranking Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee, and Missouri Rep. Sam Graves, the chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, have both expressed their opposition to Washington’s nomination.
The FAA has been operating without a permanent administrator for a year.
In that time, the agency has contended with several problems that have plagued travelers and the airline industry, such as recent near-collisions involving airliners, crucial staffing shortages and malfunctions of aging technology that have cause major air travel disruption.
While Democrats largely seemed supportive during Washington’s…
Read the full article here