Six Indian-Americans named to Biden’s unity task forces

Washington: Six prominent Indian Americans have been named to the Biden-Sanders Unity task forces announced by former Vice President Joe Biden.

Biden, 77, is the presumptive nominee of the Democratic party and the unity task force is a result of Senator Bernie Sanders’ endorsement of the Biden campaign.

Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy have been named co-chairs of the Health Care Task Force.

Jayapal, the first Indian-American woman to be elected to the US House of Representatives, has been a traditional supporter of Senator Bernie Sanders, who has now dropped out of the race in support of the former vice president.

Biden is set to be formally nominated by the Democratic National Convention in Wisconsin in August. Once nominated, Biden will vie for the White House against 73-year-old Donald Trump, the incumbent President who is seeking re-election in the November 3 poll.

Biden and Sanders have named a diverse group of respected leaders and experts to Biden-Sanders unity task forces to explore possible policy initiatives in six areas covering: climate change, criminal justice reform, economy, education, health care, and immigration, a media statement said.

Climate change activist Varshini Prakash from Boston is the youngest member of these task forces. She is the executive director of the Sunrise Movement, a leading organization focused on climate change among young people.

Chiraag Bains, director of Legal Strategies for the think tank Demos and former Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, now president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, will serve on the Criminal Justice Reform group.

Eminent Indian American economist and former lobbyist Sonal Shah has been named to the Economy Task Force.

According to RealClearPolitics, which maintains an average of all major national polls, Biden leads Trump by 5.5 percentage points.

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