WASHINGTON – Retooling for a re-election run, President Barack Obama is shaking up his senior leadership team to deal with the new realities of his term: The era of big legislation is over, a massive campaign effort needs energy and people, and the White House is taking a toll on those who run it.Obama's press secretary, Robert Gibbs, is likely to leave that job, and his interim chief of staff, Pete Rouse, may go, too. Those departures would significantly alter the management of the White House and the way it explains itself to the world.
In the coming days and weeks, Obama is also expected to have a new chief economic adviser, a new senior political counselor, and two new deputy chiefs of staff.- Collectively, the moves reflect that change is coming to the White House in ways that will alter the dynamic of the place — and, in turn, will influence the agenda affecting the nation.
- The vice president's office is in for its own new leadership, with its chief of staff, Ron Klain, leaving to run an investment company.
- People outside of Washington politics may not recognize the names of the players. How Obama is rebooting his operation is the broader story, and the aides guiding him are a central part of it.
The White House goal is to become more efficient and less insular, to realign itself for divided government, to find fresh voices and to get Obama re-elected. A major emphasis will be to ensure that the campaign works in tandem with the White House, with Obama loyalists spread across the parallel operations or helping from outside both of them.
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