Senate panel advances Biden pick as WH science adviser

The Senate Commerce Committee has approved President Joe Biden’s nomination of Eric Lander to be chief science adviser

WASHINGTON -- The Senate Commerce Committee on Thursday approved President Joe Biden's nomination of Eric Lander to be chief science adviser, one of the last unfilled Cabinet posts in the Biden administration. Lander, a geneticist and founding director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, was the lead author of the first paper announcing the details of the human genome, the so-called “book of life.” He has been nominated as director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, a position that Biden has elevated to Cabinet rank. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the Commerce panel chair, said she wished Biden had named a woman for the job, but said Lander has pledged to work to elevate women and minorities in science. “Dr. Lander and I have come to a focus and understanding that the very first task (he) should focus on is helping all of us add diversity of women and minorities in the science field,'' Cantwell said. “So he and I will be working aggressively on that.''