Rockefeller & Manchin Issue Statements on Kerry Nomination - WTRF 7 News Sports Weather - Wheeling Steubenville

Rockefeller & Manchin Issue Statements on Kerry Nomination

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Sen. John Kerry (D-Ma.) as the next Secretary of State, replacing Hillary Rodham Clinton.

According to the Associated Press, the vote was 94-3 and came just hours after the Foreign Relations Committee approved his nomination by voice vote.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) released a statement regarding Kerry's nomination.

"Senator Kerry is a proven leader, an admired public servant, and an expert on foreign affairs with strong credibility and stature across the globe.  We joined the Senate at the same time, and I'm honored to call John one of my closest friends.  It's a great day for this country," he said.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) also issued a statement praising Kerry's qualifications and decades of public service.

"John Kerry is uniquely qualified to serve as our country's Secretary of State. Over four decades of public service, from the battlefields of Vietnam to the floor of the United States Senate, he has established his credentials as one of our country's brightest statesmen. America is exceptional because it does exceptional things, as John likes to say," he said. "But it does exceptional things because it has exceptional men like John."