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Obama Shakes Up White House as He Names Chief of Staff
WASHINGTON DC (NY Times) — President Obama plans to shake up his White House staff on Friday, installing a new team largely made up of familiar faces moved to different positions as he gears up for an intense push on sweeping legislation early in his second term.
Mr. Obama will name Denis R. McDonough, a longtime aide and currently the principal deputy national security adviser, as his new White House chief of staff and will shuffle around a series of other officials in the West Wing. The president plans to make the announcements in the East Room at 12:10 p.m., according to a White House official.
McDonough to become Obama’s fifth chief of staff
(MSNBC News) – McDonough will become Obama’s fifth chief of staff, replacing Jack Lew, who was nominated by the president to become Treasury Secretary. Lew took over the post from Bill Daley, who was inserted in the post after Rahm Emanuel left the White House to run for mayor of Chicago. Longtime Obama adviser Pete Rouse briefly served as acting chief of staff between Emanuel’s exit and Daley’s entrance.
- Rob Nabors — the president’s current director of legislative affairs, who was involved in the fiscal cliff negotiations — will be named assistant to the president and Deputy White House Chief of Staff for Policy.
- Tony Blinken will replace McDonough as assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor.
- Dan Pfeiffer, a 2008 Obama campaign veteran, who was White House communications director, will be named assistant to the president and senior adviser, a role held currently by David Plouffe. Jennifer Palmieri, who was the deputy communications director, will become director.
- Other staff announcements: Danielle Gray will be named assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary; Katy Kale assumes the title of assistant to the President for Management and Administration;
- Lisa Monaco will be named assistant to the president and Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism (assuming John Brennan is confirmed as head of the CIA);
- Miguel Rodriguez will be named assistant to the president and director of legislative affairs, replacing Nabors; David Simas will become assistant to the president and deputy senior advisor for communications and strategy.