Obama Close to Naming McDonough as Next Chief of Staff
President Barack Obama is close to naming Denis McDonough as his fifth chief of staff, with an announcement coming as soon as this week, according to a person familiar with the matter.
McDonough, if selected, would succeed Jack Lew, Obama’s choice as the next Treasury secretary. Selecting McDonough would elevate one of the president’s former congressional staff members whose loyalty to him is unquestioned, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to discuss personnel decisions.
The chief of staff serves as the president’s gatekeeper, making the position one of the most powerful in the White House. Obama, a senator from Illinois when he won the presidency in 2008, has a long relationship with McDonough, 43, who joined his Capitol Hill office in 2007, said the people.
“Denis has been one of the people the president has most trusted and depended on,” said Bill Burton, Obama’s former deputy press secretary. “He is extraordinarily talented, extremely intelligent and unbelievably loyal in a town where loyalty is not always rewarded.”
Last week, Obama named Lew as Timothy F. Geithner’s replacement as Treasury Secretary, leaving a vacancy should the appointment gain Senate confirmation. The chief of staff job isn’t subject to Senate confirmation.
To contact the reporter on this story: Hans Nichols in Washington at hnichols2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steven Komarow at skomarow1@bloomberg.net
Deputy National Security Advisor Denis McDonough
Orlando Sierra/AFP/Getty Images
Selecting Denis McDonough would elevate one of the president’s former congressional staff members whose loyalty to him is unquestioned, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to discuss personnel decisions.
Selecting Denis McDonough would elevate one of the president’s former congressional staff members whose loyalty to him is unquestioned, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to discuss personnel decisions. Photographer: Orlando Sierra/AFP/Getty Images
Jan. 10 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama speaks about his nomination of Jack Lew to succeed Timothy Geithner as U.S. Treasury secretary. Obama called Lew, currently the White House chief of staff, a "master of policy." Geithner and Lew also speak. (Source: Bloomberg)
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