October 05, 2021

Senate Banking and Housing Committee Votes on Key Biden Administration Nominees

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, led the Committee in voting on nine key Biden Administration nominees:

  • Mr. Brian Nelson, of California, to be Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, U.S. Department of Treasury;
  • Ms. Elizabeth Rosenberg, of Vermont, to be Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing, U.S. Department of Treasury;
  • Ms. Alexia Marie Gabrielle Latortue, of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury; 
  • Mr. Graham Scott Steele, of California, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury;
  • Mr. Alan F. Estevez, of Maryland, to be Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security; 
  • Ms. Thea D. Rozman Kendler, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce;
  • Ms. Julia R. Gordon, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; 
  • Mr. David Uejio, of California, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and
  • Mr. Solomon J. Greene, of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

Alexia Latortue, Alan Estevez, and Thea Kendler were advanced for full Senate consideration by voice vote. Graham Steele was advanced by a vote of 17-7. Votes on Brian Nelson, Elizabeth Rosenberg, Julia Gordon, David Uejio, and Solomon Greene were tied.

Sen. Brown’s remarks at today’s markup, as prepared for entrance into the record, follow:

Today, we will consider the nominations of nine nominees with extensive qualifications for key roles at the Departments of Treasury, Commerce, and Housing and Urban Development.

The nominees we will vote on today have answered the call to public service at a time when our country needs them the most.

Our nominees understand the many challenges facing families and our country.

Brian Nelson, Elizabeth Rosenberg, Alexia Latortue, and Graham Steele are the President’s nominees for critical national security, international affairs, and domestic finance positions at the Department of Treasury.

Mr. Nelson is the President’s nominee for Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes. Earlier in his career, Mr. Nelson served at the National Security Division of the Department of Justice. He then went to work for the California Department of Justice, where he served as Special Assistant Attorney General and then as General Counsel, combating cross-border money laundering, human trafficking, and other crimes. 

Ms. Rosenberg is the President’s nominee for Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing. Ms. Rosenberg currently serves as Counselor to the Deputy Secretary of the Treasury. Prior to joining the Biden Administration, Ms. Rosenberg served as a Senior Fellow and Director of the Energy, Economics, and Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. From 2009 to 2013, she served at the Treasury Department in a number of senior roles.  

Ms. Latortue is the President’s nominee for Assistant Secretary for International Markets. She is currently Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation. She previously served in the Obama Administration as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Development Policy. Ms. Latortue’s experience also includes serving at World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Mr. Steele is the President’s nominee for Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions. Mr. Steele is currently the director of the Corporations and Society Initiative at Stanford Graduate School of Business. From 2010 to 2017, Mr. Steele served in my personal Senate office and on the Banking and Housing Committee as a senior aide. From 2015 to 2017, Mr. Steele served as Minority Chief Counsel for the Committee. Prior to serving as Chief Counsel, he served as my Staff Director of the Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Subcommittee.

Alan Estevez and Thea Kendler are the President’s nominees for highly important positions at the Department of Commerce – Bureau of Industry and Security.

Mr. Estevez is the President’s nominee to serve as Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security. Mr. Estevez spent 36 years at the Department of Defense in various roles. From 2013 to 2017, he served as Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics. Prior to that role, Mr. Estevez served as Assistant Secretary of Defense, focusing on logistics and material readiness. Earlier in his career, he served as a Program Manager at the U.S. Army Strategic Logistics Agency.

Thea Kendler is the President’s nominee for Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration. She currently serves as a trial attorney in the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. Prior to serving at the DOJ, Ms. Kendler served as Senior Counsel in the Commerce Department’s Office of Chief Counsel for Industry and Security.

The President has nominated Julia Gordon, David Uejio, and Solomon Greene to crucial positions at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Ms. Gordon is the President’s nominee to serve as Assistant Secretary for Housing and Commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration. She currently serves as president of the National Community Stabilization Trust. Previously, Ms. Gordon served as the manager of the single-family policy team at the Federal Housing Finance Agency, where she led work to help homeowners stay in their homes following the 2008 financial crisis. She was also a Senior Policy Counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending.

Mr. Uejio is the President’s nominee to serve as Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. Mr. Uejio currently serves as Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Previously, Mr. Uejio served in various senior roles at NIH, OPM, and DOD.

Finally, Solomon Greene is the President’s nominee to serve as Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research. Mr. Greene currently serves as a senior fellow at the Urban Institute. Mr. Greene previously served as Senior Advisor at HUD, a litigation associate at a major law firm, and an adjunct professor at NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

I strongly support their nominations and urge others to do the same. 

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