Biden confirms Ron Klain out, Jeff Zients in as White House chief of staff
WASHINGTON — President Biden announced Friday that Ron Klain was departing as White House chief of staff and would be replaced by former White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeff Zients — confirming weeks of speculation about the move.
The transition comes as the 80-year-old president faces a federal investigation of his handling of classified records and prepares to launch his reelection campaign.
Zients, 56, also served as White House budget director under President Barack Obama and had a seat on Facebook’s board of directors from 2018 to 2020.
Zients is believed to be Biden’s wealthiest aide, with disclosure forms indicating a personal fortune ranging between $89.3 million and $442.8 million. His riches come in part from health care companies accused of defrauding Medicare and Medicaid, according to a profile published last year in the progressive American Prospect magazine.
“I’m confident that Jeff will continue Ron’s example of smart, steady leadership, as we continue to work hard every day for the people we were sent here to serve,” Biden said in a written statement.
Biden noted that Zients was given the “daunting and complicated task of fixing healthcare.gov, which he did successfully” when the initial website launch flopped in 2013.
“I’ve seen Jeff Zients tackle some of the toughest issues in government,” Biden said.
“When I was Vice President, I first got to know him at the beginning of the Obama-Biden Administration, working closely on American Recovery and Reinvestment Act implementation as Jeff was a leader at the Office of Management and Budget,” Biden said.
“He was later handed the daunting and complicated task of fixing healthcare.gov, which he did successfully, helping get millions of Americans quality, affordable health insurance. He led the National Economic Council, and shares my focus on strengthening our economy to work for everyone.”
Biden noted that Zients also “helped manage our Administration’s transition into office under incredibly trying circumstances. Thanks to Jeff, we had a historically diverse team in place on Day 1 ready to go to work. And he led our COVID response, a massive logistical undertaking of historic proportions.”
Klain, nicknamed “President Klain” by some due to his immense influence, is leaving after the disclosures that documents with classified markings from Biden’s vice presidency and Senate years were found in his former DC think-tank office and at his Wilmington, Delaware, home — triggering the appointment of special counsel Robert Hur to determine whether Biden or others in his orbit broke the law.
Biden said that the White House will host a transition event next week to “thank Ron for his tireless work and officially welcome Jeff back to the White House in this role” — a notable contrast from former President Donald Trump, who fired his first chief of staff in a tweet.
Zients, like Klain, has a reputation for a relatively drama-free management style coupled with anecdotal examples of thoughtfulness toward staff — but his wealth and business record, including fraud settlements by his company Portfolio Logic’s health care businesses, could introduce new complications.
In his prior role as coronavirus coordinator, Zients, who also co-owns the popular Call Your Mother bagel chain in DC, led press briefings with Dr. Anthony Fauci and CDC Director Rochelle Walensky. The usually web-streamed forums frequently featured a highly curated list of reporters who were able to ask questions — frustrating journalists who agitated for greater diversity in those selected to inquire about pandemic policy.
