Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) speak in support of Tara Sweeney to be Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs on the floor of the Senate on June 28, 2018.
Hours after the pair spoke, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), the majority leader in the Senate, brought up Sweeney's nomination. The Senate then confirmed Sweeney by a voice vote.
The Assistant Secretary is a political post at the Department of the Interior. The person oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, an agency that includes the Bureau of Indian Education.
Sweeney, who is Inupiat, is the first Alaska Native person in the position. She's also the first woman in two decades.
Sweeney is the 13th Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs.
Photo by Senate Committee on Indian Affairs:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/131671645@N03/40197952650/
