Senate confirms Eric Garcetti as US ambassador to India
Former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti's long-stalled nomination to become U.S. ambassador to India has been finalized.
The Senate on Wednesday confirmed President Joe Biden’s nomination of Garcetti to be ambassador to India after the nomination had faced pushback from some Democrats.
The chamber voted 52 to 42 earlier in the day to break a filibuster on the former Los Angeles mayor’s nomination, advancing it to a final confirmation vote.
"I’m thrilled with today’s outcome, which was a decisive and bipartisan decision to fill a critical post that has been vacant for far too long. Now the hard work begins," Garcetti said in a statement following his confirmation. "I’m deeply grateful to President Biden and the White House for the confidence and support throughout this process, and to all Senators on both sides of the aisle – whether they voted for me or not – for their thoughtful consideration. I’m ready and eager to begin my service representing our critical interests in India."
President Joe Biden originally nominated Garcetti for the post on July 9, 2021. After it stalled, Biden re-nominated him in January.
An investigation requested by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, last year concluded that it was "more probable than not" that former Garcetti senior adviser Rick Jacobs "sexually harassed multiple individuals and made racist comments towards others." It also found it "extremely unlikely" that Garcetti was unaware of the behavior, saying that "by all accounts, Mayor Garcetti is very involved in the day-to-day operation of his office."
The White House blasted the report, saying in a statement, "This partisan report was a hit job from the beginning, and many of the claims have already been conclusively debunked by more serious independent reports. The president has confidence in Mayor Garcetti and believes he will be an excellent representative in India at a critical moment and calls for the Senate to swiftly confirm him."
Garcetti has repeatedly denied any knowledge of alleged harassing behavior by Jacobs. Following the report's release, he said in a statement that he "strongly" disagreed with its conclusions.
His Chief Communications Officer Dae Levine said: "No new facts were uncovered in this report, and Mayor Garcetti strongly reaffirms the simple truth that he never witnessed or was made aware of sexual harassment. The opinion reached in the report does not reflect the truth about the experiences of so many people who have testified under oath and spoken candidly to the senator's office. It is based solely on false, repackaged allegations that have been proven false by multiple unbiased investigations and reviews."
Jacobs was accused of harassment in a 2020 lawsuit filed by Los Angeles Police Department Officer Matthew Garza, who claims Garcetti witnessed the misconduct but turned a blind eye to it.
Garcetti's former communications director, Naomi Seligman, also claimed she was forcibly kissed by Jacobs and that Garcetti knew about Jacobs' alleged pattern of harassment.