Colorado’s Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser is urging federal lawmakers to sign off on the nomination of Ken Salazar, a former interior secretary and U.S. senator from Colorado, to serve as President Joe Biden’s ambassador to Mexico.

In a letter to Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and Ranking Member James Risch, R-Idaho, Weiser and a bipartisan coalition of 29 other state attorneys general called for the panel to move “expeditiously” in approving Salazar’s nomination.

“The next American ambassador to Mexico should be a seasoned statesman – one who holds a deep and lasting knowledge of our nations’ interdependence, an understanding of the importance of trade between our markets, and a commitment to addressing border issues and immigration in a humane and intelligent manner,” the coalition said in the letter. “Ken Salazar is well equipped to meet each of these challenges.”

Salazar was nominated to the critical diplomatic post last month. The 66-year-old, fifth-generation Coloradan previously ran the Department of the Interior during former President Barack Obama’s first term and then returned to Colorado, where he joined international law firm WilmerHale as a partner and founded the firm’s Denver office.

Prior to joining the Obama administration, he served a four-year term in the U.S. Senate as well as six years as Colorado’s attorney general, including in the early years of the new century when he was the only Colorado Democrat elected to statewide office.

The coalition of attorneys general closed the letter by urging the U.S. Senate to also “immediately” vote on Salazar’s confirmation.