The New Obama Administration: Key Positions
Key positions announced as of 1/5/09:
White House staff
Chief of Staff: Rahm Emanuel
Deputy Chief of Staff:Jim Messina
Deputy Chief of Staff: Mona Sutphen
Senior adviser & intergovernmental relations and public liaison: Valerie Jarrett
Senior adviser to the President: Peter Rouse
Senior advisor to the President: David Axelrod
White House counsel: Gregory Craig
Deputy White House Counsel with a Focus on Domestic Policy and Ethics: Cassandra Butts
Staff Secretary: Lisa Brown
Cabinet Secretary: Chris Lu
Deputy Cabinet Secretary: Elizabeth Sears Smith
Director of the Office of Political Affairs: Patrick Gaspard
Special Assistant to the President and White House Social Secretary: Desirée Rogers
Director of Scheduling and Advance: Alyssa Mastromonaco
Director, White House Military Office: Louis Caldera
Director of Public Liaison: Christina M. Tchen
Chief of Staff to the Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Relations and Public Liaison: Michael Strautmanis
Director of Communications: Ellen Moran
Press secretary: Robert Gibbs
Deputy Director of Communications: Dan Pfeiffer
Director of Speechwriting: Jonathan Favreau
Director of Intergovernmental Affairs: Cecilia Muñoz
Director of White House Office of Health Reform: Senator Tom Daschle
Deputy Director of White House Office of Health Reform: Dr. Jeanne Lambrew
Legislative affairs: Phil Schiliro
Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs for the United States Senate: Shawn Maher
Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs for the United States House: Dan Turton
Vice President’s office
Chief of Staff: Ron Klain
Deputy Chief of Staff: Alan Hoffman
Counsel to the Vice President: Cynthia Hogan
Director of Administration for the Office of the Vice President: Moises (Moe) V. Vela, Jr
Counselor to the Vice President: Mike Donilon
Domestic Policy Advisor to the Vice President: Terrell McSweeny
Assistant to the Vice President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison: Evan Ryan
Chief of Staff for Dr. Jill Biden: Catherine (Cathy) M. Russell
Deputy Chief of Staff to the First Lady: Melissa Winter
Chief Economist and Economic Policy Advisor to the Vice President: Jared Bernstein
Assistant to the Vice President and Director of Communications: Jay Carney
Press Secretary to the Vice President: Elizabeth Alexander
Deputy Press Secretary to the Vice President: Annie Tomasini
National Security Advisor to the Vice President: Antony “Tony” Blinken
Director of Legislative Affairs: Sudafi Henry
Economic team:
Secretary of the Treasury: Timothy F. Geithner
Director of the National Economic Council: Lawrence H. Summers
Director of the Council of Economic Advisors: Christina D. Romer
Director of the Domestic Policy Council: Melody C. Barnes
Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council: Heather A. Higginbottom
Office of Management and Budget Director: Peter Orszag
Office of Management and Budget Deputy Director: Rob Nabors
Chair of the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board : Paul Volcker
Staff Director and Chief Economist of the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board & Member of the Council of Economic Advisers: Austan Goolsbee
National security team
Secretary of State: Sen. Hillary Clinton
Secretary of Defense: Robert Gates
National Security Advisor: General Jim Jones, USMC (Ret)
Ambassador to the United Nations: Susan Rice
Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security: Governor Janet Napolitano
Attorney General: Eric Holder
Energy and Environment team
Secretary of Energy: Dr. Steven Chu
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator: Lisa Jackson
Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality: Nancy Sutley
Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change: Carol Browner
Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change: Heather Zichal
Other cabinet secretaries
Secretary of Commerce:
Secretary of Veterans Affairs: General Eric K. Shinseki
Secretary of Health and Human Services: Senator Tom Daschle
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Shaun Donovan
Secretary of Education: Arne Duncan
Secretary of Agriculture: Governor Tom Vilsack
Secretary of the Interior: Senator Ken Salazar
Secretary of Labor: Congresswoman Hilda Solis
Secretary of Transportation: Former Congressman Ray LaHood
United States Trade Representative: Former Mayor Ron Kirk
Science and Technology Team
Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; Co-Chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST): Dr. John Holdren
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Administrator: Dr. Jane Lubchenco
Co-Chair, President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST): Dr. Eric Lander
Co-Chair, President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST): Dr. Harold Varmus
Regulatory
Chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): Mary Schapiro
Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission: Gary Gensler
Nominee for Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System: Daniel Tarullo
Administrator of the Small Business Administration: Karen G. Mills
FIrst Lady
Special Assistant to the President and Director of Communications for the First Lady: Camille Johnston
Press Secretary for the First Lady:Katie McCormick Lelyveld
Deputy Press Secretary for the First Lady:Semonti Mustaphi
Key national security positions involved in weapons of mass destruction issues (announced and not yet announced :
White House – Office of Management and Budget
Office of Management and Budget Director: Peter Orszag
Associate Director for National Security Programs
White House - National Security Council
Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (National Security Advisor): General Jim Jones, USMC (Ret) .
Deputy National Security Advisor: Thomas E. Donilon
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Strategy
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Counterproliferation Strategy
Defense Department
Secretary of Defense: Robert Gates
Deputy Undersecretary for Policy
Assistant Secretary for Global Security Affairs
Assistant Secretary for Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict & Interdependent Capabilities
Assistant to the Secretary for Nuclear and Chemical and Biological Defense Programs
Director, Defense Threat Reduction Agency
Energy Department
Secretary of Energy: Dr. Steven Chu
Under Secretary for Nuclear Security and Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration
Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs, National Nuclear Security Administration
Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, National Nuclear Security Administration
State Department
Secretary of State: Sen. Hillary Clinton
Deputy Secretary of State: James B. Steinberg
Deputy Secretary of State: Jacob J. "Jack" Lew
Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security
Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs
Assistant Secretary for International Security and Nonproliferation
Assistant Secretary for Verification, Compliance, and Implementation
Department of Homeland Security
Undersecretary fo Science and Technology
Assistant Secretary for Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer
Vice President’s office
National Security Advisor to the Vice President: Antony “Tony” Blinken
President's Science Adviser:
Assistant to the President for Science and Technology: Dr. John Holdren
Transition team:
Obama-Biden Transition Project - 3 co-chairs: John Podesta, Valerie Jarrett, and Pete Rouse.
Transition team advisory board: Carol Browner, William Daley, Christopher Edley, Michael Froman, Julius Genachowski, Donald Gips, Governor Janet Napolitano, Federico Peña, Susan Rice, Sonal Shah, Mark Gitenstein, and Ted Kaufman.
Transition Senior Staff:
Chris Lu - Executive Director
Dan Pfeiffer - Communications Director
Stephanie Cutter - Chief Spokesperson
Cassandra Butts - General Counsel
Jim Messina - Personnel Director
Patrick Gaspard - Associate Personnel Director
Christine Varney - Personnel Counsel
Melody Barnes - Co-Director of Agency Review
Lisa Brown - Co-Director of Agency Review
Phil Schiliro - Director of Congressional Relations
Michael Strautmanis - Director of Public Liaison and Intergovernmental Affairs
Katy Kale - Director of Operations
Brad Kiley - Director of Operations
Vice President-elect’s transition team: Mark Gitenstein, and Ted Kaufman.
Agency Review Co-Chairs: Melody Barnes, Lisa Brown, Don Gips
Working Group Members: Seth Harris, David J. Hayes, Reed Hundt, Sally Katzen, Tom Perez, Sarah Sewall, Louisa Terrell, Ray Rivera, Michael Warren, Tom Wheeler, Jon Wilkins
Sarah Sewall is a member of the Obama-Biden Transition Project's Agency Review Working Group responsible for the national security agencies.
Chief spokeswoman for national security: Brooke Anderson
Policy Working Group - National Security
Heads: James B. Steinberg, Dr. Susan E. Rice
Group Members: Jeffrey Bader, Jeremy Bash, Antony Blinken, Gregory Craig, Ivo Daalder, Richard Danzig, Mary De Rosa, Michele Flournoy, Stephen Flynn, Michelle Gavin, Philip Gordon, Scott Gration, Frank Januzzi, Colin Kahl, Liz King, Paul Kurtz, Daniel Kurtzer, Ellen Laipson, Mark Lippert, Denis McDonough, Michael McFaul, Carlos Monje, Erin O'Connor, Peter Ogden, Joseph Paulsen, Daniel Restrepo, Bruce Riedel, Dennis Ross, Mara Rudman, Whitney Schneidman, Eric Schwartz, Sarah Sewall, Daniel Shapiro, Steven Simon, Peter Singer, Gayle Smith, Mona Sutphen, Jennifer Urizar, Toni Verstandig, Jeremy Weinstein
Department of State Agency Review Team Leads: Tom Donilon, Wendy R. Sherman
Senior advisor for State transition: Warren Christopher
Others on team: Natasha Bilimoria, Esther Brimmer, Lee Feinstein, Robert Gelbard, Matthew Goodman, Michael Guest, Vicki Huddleston, Joseph Huggins, Brian McKeon, Samantha Power, Puneet Talwar, Robert Einhorn
Foreign Assistance
Foreign Assistance (USAID, MCC and PEPFAR) Review Team Leads: Gayle Smith, Aaron Williams
Others on US AID team: Frederick Barton, Wendy Chamberlin, Valerie Dickson-Horton, Sheila Herrling, Larry Nowels
Department of Defense Agency Review Team Leads: John P. White, Michèle A. Flournoy
Informal senior adviser role throughout the defense transition process: Sam Nunn
Others on team: Kurt Campbell, Ashton Carter, Janine Davidson, Matthew Flavin, Jeh Johnson, Donald Kerrick, Ellen Maldonado, James McCleskey, Craig Mullaney, Andrew Shapiro, Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, Robert Work
National Security Council:
National Security Council Review Team Leads: Antony Blinken, Ivo Daalder, Mara Eve Rudman
Also on team: Derek Chollet
Department of Energy: Energy and Natural Resources Team Leads
David J. Hayes, Bart Chilton, Carole Jett, Elgie Holstein, Elizabeth Montoya, Sue Tierney, Cecilia V. Estolano, Lisa Jackson, Robert Sussman, Rose McKinney-James, John Leshy:
Energy and Natural Resources Team: Department of Energy, Henry Atkinson, Lucy Blake, Carolyn Green, Skila Harris, Cynthia Quarterman, Gregory Watson
Department of Homeland Security:
Department of Homeland Security Review Team Leads: Rand Beers, Clark Kent Ervin
Others on team: Beverly Aimaro Pheto, Rachana Bhowmik, Philip Crowley, Juliette Kayyem, Robert Knake, David Martin, Juan Otero, Nelson Peacock
Subhasri Ramanathan, Michael Sheehan
Intelligence Community Review Team Leads:
(Includes Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency, National Counterterrorism Center): John O. Brennan, Judith A. (“Jami”) Miscik
Also on team: Jennifer Sims
Others on Director of National Intelligence team: Maureen Baginski, Adam Cohn, Robert Harding, Andrew Johnson, Edward Levine, Eric Pelofsky, James Schear, Caryn Wagner
Office of Management and Budget Review Team Lead: Barbara Chow
Others on OMB team:: Gordon Adams, Michael Deich, TJ Glauthier, Jeffrey Liebman, Marcia Occomy, Victoria Wachino
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