John McCain's widow Cindy McCain set to become first Republican appointee in Biden's administration

Cindy McCain could become the first Republican appointee in the new administration as President Joe Biden vets her to be the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. World Food Programme.

Two people familiar with the matter told Politico McCain is currently undergoing a background check for the coveted ambassador post based in Rome, which requires a Senate confirmation.

McCain and her late husband Senator John McCain have been close friends with the Biden’s for decades.

The longtime Republican senator’s widow was essential to Biden winning Arizona over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election after she gave him her full endorsement. Biden barely won Arizona, slimy beating out Trump by .4%.

He was the first Democratic president to win Arizona since Bill Clinton in 1996. 

President Joe Biden is vetting Cindy McCain to be U.S. ambassador to the U.N. World Food Programme. She is the first Republican Biden is appointing in his administration so far

McCain, 66, and her late husband, Arizona Senator John McCain (left), have been friends with Biden for decades

Biden and McCain served together in Congress for more than two decades

Cindy McCain’s endorsement of Biden in the 2020 presidential election was crucial to him winning Arizona against Donald Trump – helping him clinch the presidency

John McCain died August 2018 after battling brain cancer. He and then-President Trump had a long-standing feud – likely helping lead to Mrs. McCain’s endorsement of her party’s opponent. 

Biden served alongside John McCain in the Senate for more than two decades before becoming Barack Obama’s vice president in 2009. 

Cindy McCain, 66, is chair of the McCain Institute board of trustee and has worked on projects to end world hunger and human trafficking.

She visited Georgia with the U.S. World Food Programme during her husband’s 2008 campaign for president where she visited with wounded soldiers after a Russian invasion.

The Arizona Republican has also monitored its work in Southeast Asia and Africa.

Biden failed to install at least one Republican in a formal cabinet position – a practice of the three consecutive Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Trump broke the streak.

The position McCain is up for, while not a Cabinet post, does require a Senate confirmation.

Biden joined ABC’s ‘The View’ in December 2017. Shown here alongside the McCain’s daughter Meghan, who co-hosts the show

Biden gave tribute to Sen. McCain during memorial service following his death in August 2018

Biden’s predecessor often made negative comments about Senator McCain’s military service, saying during a 2015 campaign stop in Iowa: “He’s not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.”

McCain was a Navy pilot who served in the Vietnam War. In 1967 he was shot down and spent more than five years in a notorious North Vietnamese prison where he was repeatedly tortured and spent two years in solitary confinement.

After McCain’s death, Trump did not let up on his attacks against him – often bringing up his crucial ‘no’ vote that struck down Republicans’ hope in the Senate to do away with Obamacare.

Biden is expected to announce the majority of his ambassadorships at the same time instead of individually rolling them out.