In a recent interview with the Politico, NAACP president Ben Jealous criticized President Barack Obama for the lack of diversity among his recent cabinet picks.
“He still has several more appointments, and we expect that we’ll see at least the same diversity that we saw the first time around. What we’re hoping to see is a black woman on the U.S. Supreme Court,” Jealous said.
The civil rights advocate went on to tout rising Democratic star Kamala Harris, who is currently serving as attorney general in California.
“Kamala Harris would be a brilliant pick. I personally would like to see somebody young who could stay on there for decades,” he said.
President Obama’s first three major appointments for his second term were all white males: John Kerry for Secretary of State, Jack Lew for Treasury and Chuck Hagel for Defense.
Additionally, the Obama White House has seen the departure of several key minority and/or female cabinet members such as Ron Kirk (U.S. Trade Representative), Stephen Chu (Energy), and Lisa Jackson (EPA administrator).
Rep. Charlie Rangel, a Democrat from New York, has also sharply criticized President Obama on his recent Cabinet picks.
“It’s as embarrassing as hell,” Rangel said on MSNBC’s Jansing & Co. “We’ve been through all of this with Mitt Romney. And we were very hard on Mitt Romney with his women binder and a variety of things.”