The US Senate has confirmed Richard Rahul Verma as the next US Ambassador to India. The 46-year-old Verma will be the first-ever Indian American to occupy the post.
Senate Democrats, at the prodding of the White House, expedited Verma’s confirmation to ensure that he was in the post ahead of President Barack Obama’s visit next month to be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations.
A former Assistant Secretary of State for legislative Affairs during President Obama’s first White House term, Verma will be succeeding Nancy Powell, who resigned in March in the wake of the diplomatic rift over the Devyani Khobragade episode. Holding the fort at the US Embassy in New Delhi has been Kathleen Stephens as charge d’affaires.
With the decks cleared for Verma, efforts are now under way for an early confirmation vote for another key Indian-American nominee – Dr Vivek Murthy, chosen by President Obama for the post of US Surgeon General.
An alumnus of the prestigious Yale and Harvard universities, the 37-year-old Murthy was named by Obama more than a year ago for the post, but his nomination has drawn flak from the Senate Republicans, who are irked not only over his credentials as a strong supporter of “Obamacare”, but also for his vigorous advocacy of gun control, including a ban on assault weapons.
After a nomination hearing in February this year, chances of Murthy’s confirmation for the job became increasingly uncertain, because of fears that the Republicans would go the whole hog against Murthy in the floor vote.