“It is incredibly frustrating to watch because we are talking about individuals who are preeminently qualified, but also coming from communities that have been screaming at the top of their lungs to be visible and valued by this country,” said Gregg Orton, national director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans.

The daughter of Indian immigrants, Tanden has seen her nomination stall in recent days amid opposition from senators of both parties. Objecting lawmakers have cited her partisan, personal tweets, including those that have gone after them individually. But Democrats and interest groups say she is being unfairly targeted because of her gender and race…

“She is being held to a much higher standard, even though nobody disputes her background and qualifications to be OMB director,” said Shekar Narasimhan, AAPI Victory Fund chair. “It’s becoming apparent this higher standard applies primarily to nominees of color, and it particularly hurts with historic nominations like Neera’s.”