Biden nominated Jeff Zients as the new White House chief of staff

Joe Biden has appointed Jeff Zients, former White House policy coordinator for COVID-19, as his chief of staff. This is according to a White House statement released Friday. Zients will replace current chief of staff Ron Klein, the statement said.

The president thanked Klein, with whom they have worked together for the past 36 years, including the last two years in the current administration, calling him a “talented man” and a “brilliant intellectual.”

“Working together, we have made incredible progress against COVID, revitalized our economy, rebuilt our infrastructure, and obtained endorsements for nearly 100 federal judges, including the first black woman on the U.S. Supreme Court,” the president said in a statement. – We are restoring America’s place in the world and, perhaps most importantly, restoring faith in our democracy.”

Zients, who was in charge of the Joe Biden administration’s transition process after his election in 2020, previously held positions in fiscal policy and strategy in President Barack Obama’s administration.

He served as director of the National Economic Council and acting director of the Office of Management and Budget in the Obama administration. He also led the team that helped fix the HealthCare.gov website after its initial failed launch.

In the Biden administration, Seyants became the first coordinator of the COVID-19 pandemic response. He was tasked with rolling out a massive vaccination program across the country in early 2021. He stepped down from that position in 2022 before being brought in to prepare for a new White House appointment after the midterm elections.

Zients also has extensive business experience, having served as chairman and CEO of The Advisory Board, an education and health care consulting firm. He has also been managing partner of investment firm Portfolio Logic, chairman of the board of directors of Children’s National Medical Center, and served on the board of directors of Facebook.

The White House chief of staff manages the day-to-day processes of the administration, oversees the implementation of presidential policies and serves as a liaison between cabinet members.

Zients has a reputation for problem solving and implementing new solutions, making his skill set appropriate for the new phase of Biden’s presidency.

“When I ran for president, I promised that government would work for the good of the American people. That’s what Jeff will do. We have a big task ahead of us to implement the laws we passed effectively and fairly,” Biden said in describing his new chief of staff.

A formal event to celebrate the change in the chief of staff of the administration will be held at the White House next week.

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