Senate confirms Trump's nominee for new CDC director

New CDC Director Dr. Erica Schwartz.

The Senate voted in favor of confirming President Trump's pick to lead the CDC on Wednesday in a 51-44 vote that makes Dr. Erica Schwartz the new director of the Centers for Disease Control. 

Schwartz is a retired Navy rear admiral and a lawyer who served as a deputy surgeon general during Trump's first term and also has experience overseeing the healthcare system used by the U.S. Coast Guard, according to CBS News. 

When Trump nominated her for the role back in April, he spotlighted her impressive education and work backgrounds. "Erica graduated from Brown University for College and Medical School, and served a distinguished career as a Doctor of Medicine in the United States Military, the Greatest and Most Powerful Force in the World, and then served as my Deputy Surgeon General during my First Term," the president said at the time. "She is a STAR!"

One Democrat even crossed the aisle and recognized Schwartz's resume, joining in voting with the Republicans, who unanimously approved Schwartz, to confirm her to the post. "She's got the qualifications for the job," Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia told Politico of his decision to support her nomination. 

Schwartz becomes the CDC's first full-time director in nearly a year. Susan Monarez was fired by RFK Jr last August less than a month into the job due to disagreements over vaccines, a volatile topic in a post-Anthony Fauci Washington. During her confirmation hearing last month, Schwartz told senators she believes vaccines are generally safe and effective, according to NBC News. 

Incidentally, Schwartz is the first black woman to ever become CDC director, a detail that was omitted by several media outlets like the The New York Times and ABC News, which typically report intensely on skin color and gender -- except when Trump has appointed a black woman to a particular job for a first time, and doing so would undermine a certain narrative that's been carefully crafted for more than a decade. Jay Bhattacharya, director of the NIH, has been serving as acting CDC director since February. 

Below, watch Schwartz's opening statement at her Senate confirmation hearing last month: