Biden appoints long-serving aide Ron Klain as his chief of staff

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• Joe Biden, 46th president-elect, has decided to appoint his aide Ron Klain as his administration’s chief of staff.
• Klain, a top-ranking Democtaric official and longtime Biden adviser, was chosen for his experience working withing different White House administrations.
• The Biden administration is faced with the difficult challenge of uniting a divided country plagued with the coronavirus.

The 46th President-elect Joe Biden has decided to retain his loyal adviser Ron Klain as his chief of staff, a qualified aide with long years of exposure as the top-ranking official in his administration.

The Democratic official will spearhead a White House that would expectedly face a COVID-19 crisis, which still infects many people across the nation.  Klain also has to work with Congress that is not unified and could include a Senate led by Republicans.

Klain worked during the Ebola outbreak in 2004 as the response effort controller.

On Wednesday, Biden said in a statement that he picked Klain for the job because his long-standing involvement in Washington had made him fit to face the administration’s challenges. Biden added that Klain’s experience in working with many people, political or not, is what could make him an effective White House chief to staff amidst the coronavirus crisis that divides the nation.

During President Barack Obama’s first term, Klain served as Biden’s chief of staff and worked at the same capacity in the mid-90s with Vice President Al Gore. Klain was also a Biden campaign key consultant, advising on the president-elect’s debate planning and COVID-19 response. His working relationship with Biden can also be traced back to 1987 during the Democrat’s presidential campaign.

The appointment of Klain highlights the determination of Biden’s incoming administration that deals with the coronavirus response. Klain has worked in public health as a response coordinator during the Ebola outbreak. He also played a central role in planning and implementing the Obama administration’s  2009 economic recovery program.

On a Twitter post, Klain said he was honored by Biden’s trust, promising that he’ll do his best to lead a great team under the incoming administration.

Getting Klain can also potentially ease some apprehensions among left-wingers who had been preparing for a battle over one of the initial and most significant staff choices Biden will make in creating his

White House team. The chief of staff basically holds the key towards the president, prepares a legislative and political strategy, and regularly serves as a representative in lawmaking talks to Capitol Hill.

Progressives had conveyed worries that Biden would choose Steve Richetti, one of his ex chiefs of staff who faces doubt for his work as a lobbyist, or Bruce Reed, who was perceived as too moderate to accept reforms pushed by the party. However, reformists see Klain as someone willing to work with them on topmost concerns such as health care and climate change.

Source: AOL