White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday criticized the Senate for not moving more quickly to confirm President Biden’s ambassadorial nominees, as only one of Biden’s political ambassadors has been confirmed more than six months after the inauguration.

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       “We are frustrated over the slow pace of confirmations, particularly for noncontroversial nominees,” Psaki told reporters at the Wednesday afternoon news briefing. “A number of these nominees who are sitting and waiting are highly qualified. A number of them have a lot of Republican support. So what is the holdup?”

       Hours earlier, the Senate confirmed Ken Salazar, the former interior secretary and senator from Colorado, as U.S. ambassador to Mexico. Salazar is the first of Biden’s political ambassadors to be confirmed by the Senate.

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       Historically, some ambassadors are career Foreign Service officers while others are political ambassadors — individuals who are often allies of the president or major donors to his or her campaign.

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       Thus far, Psaki said, Biden has tapped nearly 275 nominees who have yet to be confirmed by the Senate. Biden has sent over more nominees than former president Donald Trump had by this point in his term and about the same number as former presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush had, Psaki said.

       “It’s important for us around the world to have qualified ambassadors who are confirmed by the Senate to lead our country and represent our country at this point in time,” she told reporters. “There are also a number of other positions — at the Treasury Department, at other domestic agencies — that could play a pivotal role as our country is continuing to deal with an economic recovery.”

       Anne Gearan contributed to this report.