Counselor to the President

Counselor to the President
Incumbent Vacant
Executive Office of the President White House Office
Appointer	Barack Obama as President of the United States
Formation	January 20, 1969 (1969-01-20)
First holder	Arthur F. Burns
Website	The White House

The Counselor to the President is a high-ranking assistant to the President of the United States, and a senior member of the Executive Office of the President.

History

The position was created during the administration of Richard Nixon, where it was assigned cabinet-rank. The position would be considered at cabinet level until 1993.

During Nixon's presidency, no fewer than eight individuals held the position, with there sometimes being two or three "Counselors to the President."

During the presidency of Gerald Ford, the post was shared by Robert Hartmann and John O. Marsh.

The position was vacant during the Jimmy Carter administration, as Carter left many senior White House positions unfilled (such as White House Chief of Staff) and preferred a smaller core of advisers.^[1]

Edwin Meese held the position during the first term of President Ronald Reagan, and was highly influential inside the White House. Meese, White House Chief of Staff James Baker and Deputy White House Chief of Staff Michael Deaver were nicknamed "The Troika" and considered the most influential advisors to the president.^[2]

Meese became Attorney General during Reagan's second term as president and the position was left vacant.

The position was left vacant in the first three years of President George H.W. Bush's term. In 1992 it was filled by Clayton Yeutter after he resigned as chairman of the Republican National Committee.

During the Bill Clinton administration, the post became much more focused on communications. Two of Clinton's counselors, David Gergen and Paul Begala, later became CNN political analysts.

During the administration of George W. Bush, the Counselor oversaw the Communications, Media Affairs, Speechwriting, and Press Offices.^[3]

Under the Obama Administration, the position was initially abolished and the duties of the office transferred to three senior advisors: David Axelrod,^[4][5] Pete Rouse,^[5][6] and Valerie Jarrett,^[7] who also held the title Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Relations and Public Liaison.^[5] On January 6, 2011, President Obama appointed Rouse as Counselor to the President where he was responsible for assisting the President and White House Chief of Staff with the day-to-day management of White House staff operations.^[8][9] John Podesta was the last person to hold the position before he left to join the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign of 2016 as chairman.^[10]

Soon after the 2016 election, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to have Stephen Bannon serve as his senior counselor. Bannon will also have the additional title of "chief strategist."^[11]

List of Counselors to the President

President Reagan holds an oval office staff meeting on his first full day in office. Front left, Counselor to the President Edwin Meese.

"The Troika". From left to right: White House Chief of Staff James Baker, Counselor to the President Ed Meese and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Michael Deaver at the White House, December 2, 1981.

Counselor to the President Karen Hughes and First Lady Laura Bush, June 28, 2002.

Counselor to the President Dan Bartlett delivering a briefing on President George W. Bush's State of the Union Message, February 3, 2005.

Counselor to the President Ed Gillespie (right) and Chief of Staff to the Vice President David Addington review a document, December 5, 2007.

Counselor to the President Pete Rouse, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough and Vice President Joe Biden talk with President Barack Obama, April 2, 2013.

Counselor to the President John Podesta meets with President Obama in the Oval Office, Jan. 29, 2015.

Counselor			Term of office	Party	President
		Arthur F. Burns (1904–1987)	January 20, 1969 – November 5, 1969	Republican	Richard Nixon (1969–1974)
		Pat Moynihan (1927–2003)	November 5, 1969[12] – December 31, 1970[13]	Democratic
		Bryce Harlow (1916–1987)	November 5, 1969[12] – December 9, 1970[14]	Republican
		Robert Finch (1925–1995)	June 23, 1970[15] – December 15, 1972[16]	Republican
		Donald Rumsfeld (born 1932)	December 11, 1970[17] – October 15, 1971[17]	Republican
		Anne Armstrong (1927–2008)	January 19, 1973 – December 18, 1974	Republican
		Dean Burch (1927–1991)	March 8, 1974[18] – December 31, 1974[19]	Republican
		Kenneth Rush (1910–1994)	May 29, 1974[20] – September 19, 1974[21]	Republican
		Robert Hartmann[22] (1917–2008)	August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977	Republican	Gerald Ford (1974–1977)
		John O. Marsh (born 1926)	August 9, 1974[23] – January 20, 1977[24]	Democratic
Vacant					Jimmy Carter (1977–1981)
		Edwin Meese (born 1931)	January 20, 1981 – February 25, 1985	Republican	Ronald Reagan (1981–1989)
Vacant
					George H.W. Bush (1989–1993)
		Clayton Yeutter (born 1930)	February 1, 1992 – January 20, 1993	Republican
Vacant					Bill Clinton (1993–2001)
		David Gergen (born 1942)	May 29, 1993 – June 10, 1994	Republican
Vacant
		Bill Curry (born 1951)	February 21, 1995 – January 20, 1997	Democratic
		Paul Begala (born 1961)	August 17, 1997[25] – March 10, 1999	Democratic
		Ann Lewis (born 1937)	March 10, 1999 – January 20, 2001	Democratic
		Karen Hughes (born 1956)	January 20, 2001 – July 8, 2002	Republican	George W. Bush (2001–2009)
Vacant
		Dan Bartlett (born 1971)	January 5, 2005 – July 5, 2007	Republican
		Ed Gillespie (born 1961)	July 5, 2007 – January 20, 2009	Republican
Vacant					Barack Obama (2009–2017)
		Pete Rouse (born 1946)	January 13, 2011 – January 1, 2014	Democratic
		John Podesta (born 1949)	January 1, 2014 – February 13, 2015	Democratic
Vacant
		Steve Bannon (born 1953)	January 20, 2017	Republican	Donald Trump (2017)

References

Obama Administration personnel
Cabinet and cabinet-level Office Name Term Office Name Term Secretary of State John Kerry 2013– Secretary of Treasury Jack Lew 2013– Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter 2015– Attorney General Loretta Lynch 2015– Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell 2013– Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack 2009– Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker 2013– Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez 2013– Secretary of Health and   Human Services Sylvia Mathews Burwell 2014– Secretary of Education Secretary of Transportation Arne Duncan Anthony Foxx 2009– 2013– Secretary of Housing and Urban   Development Julian Castro 2014– Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald 2014– Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz 2013– Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson 2013– Vice President Joe Biden 2009– White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough 2013– Director of the Office of Management and   Budget Shaun Donovan 2014– Administrator of the Environmental   Protection Agency Gina McCarthy 2013– Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power 2013– Chair of the Council of Economic   Advisers Jason Furman 2013– Trade Representative Michael Froman 2013– Administrator of the Small Business Administration Maria Contreras-Sweet 2014– Below solid line: Granted Cabinet rank although not automatically part of the Cabinet. See also: Confirmations of Barack Obama's Cabinet
Executive Office of the President Office Name Term Office Name Term White House Chief of Staff White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Rahm Emanuel Pete Rouse William M. Daley Jack Lew Denis McDonough Mona Sutphen Nancy-Ann DeParle Rob Nabors 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013– 2009–11 2011–13 2013–15 National Security Advisor Deputy National Security Advisor Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan Jim Jones Thomas E. Donilon Susan Rice Thomas E. Donilon Denis McDonough Tony Blinken Avril Haines Douglas Lute† 2009–10 2010–13 2013– 2009–10 2010–13 2013–14 2015– 2009–13 White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations Jim Messina Alyssa Mastromonaco Anita Decker Breckenridge 2009–11 2011–14 2014– Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security Ben Rhodes John O. Brennan Lisa Monaco 2009– 2009–13 2013– White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Planning Mark B. Childress Kristie Canegallo 2012–14 2014– Deputy National Security Advisor and NSC Chief of Staff Denis McDonough Brooke Anderson 2009–10 2011–12 Senior Advisor to the President David Axelrod David Plouffe Daniel Pfeiffer Shailagh Murray 2009–11 2011–13 2013–15 2015– White House Communications Director Anita Dunn Daniel Pfeiffer Jennifer Palmieri Jen Psaki 2009 2009–13 2013–15 2015– Senior Advisor to the President Counselor to the President Pete Rouse Brian Deese Pete Rouse John Podesta 2009–10 2015– 2011–13 2014–15 Deputy White House Communications Director Jen Psaki Jennifer Palmieri Amy Brundage 2009–11 2011–14 2014–15 Senior Advisor to the President and Assistant to the President for Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs Director of Public Engagement Director of Intergovernmental Affairs Director, National Economic Council Valerie Jarrett Christina Tchen Jon Carson Paulette Aniskoff Cecilia Muñoz David Agnew Jerry Abramson Lawrence Summers Gene Sperling Jeffrey Zients 2009– 2009–11 2011–13 2013– 2009–12 2012–14 2014– 2009–10 2011–14 2014– White House Press Secretary Deputy Press Secretary Director of Special Projects Director of Speechwriting White House Counsel Robert Gibbs Jay Carney Josh Earnest Bill Burton Josh Earnest Eric Schultz Stephanie Cutter Jon Favreau Cody Keenan Greg Craig Robert Bauer Kathryn Ruemmler Neil Eggleston 2009–11 2011–13 2013– 2009–11 2011–13 2014– 2010–11 2009–13 2013– 2009–10 2010–11 2011–14 2014– Deputy Director, National Economic Council Deputy Director, National Economic Council Chair of the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board Diana Farrell Brian Deese Jason Furman Paul Volcker 2009–11 2011–13 2009–13 2009–11 Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs Phil Schiliro Rob Nabors Miguel Rodriguez Katie Beirne Fallon 2009–11 2011–13 2013 2013– Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors Christina Romer Austan Goolsbee Jason Furman 2009–10 2010–13 2013– Deputy Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs Lisa Konwinski Amy Rosenbaum 2009– 2014– Member of the Council of Economic Advisors Katharine Abraham 2011– Executive Clerk George T. Saunders† David Kalbaugh 2009–12 2012– Member of the Council of Economic Advisors Cecilia Rouse 2009– Director, Office of Political Affairs Patrick Gaspard David Simas 2009–11 2013– Director, Office of Management and Budget Peter R. Orszag Jack Lew Jeffrey Zients Sylvia Mathews Burwell Brian Deese Shaun Donovan 2009–10 2010–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014 2014– Chief Technology Officer Chief Information Officer Aneesh Chopra Todd Park Megan Smith Vivek Kundra Steven VanRoekel Tony Scott 2009–12 2012–14 2014– 2009–11 2011–14 2015– Chief Performance Officer and Deputy Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget Jeffrey Zients 2009–13 Director, Office of Presidential Personnel Nancy Hogan Johnathan McBride Valerie Green 2010–14 2014–15 2015– Deputy Director, Office of Management and Budget Jeffrey Liebman Heather Higginbottom Brian Deese 2010 2011–13 2013–15 Director of Scheduling and Advance Director, White House Military Office Alyssa Mastromonaco Danielle White Crutchfield George D. Mulligan Jr. Emmett Beliveau 2009–11 2011– 2009–13 2013– United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk Michael Froman 2009–13 2013– Cabinet Secretary Chris Lu Broderick Johnson 2009–13 2013– Director, Domestic Policy Council Melody Barnes Cecilia Muñoz 2009–12 2012– Deputy Cabinet Secretary Liz Sears Smith Rachana Bhowmik Michael Robertson Gaurab Bansal 2009–11 2011–13 2013–15 2015– Deputy Director, Domestic Policy Council Heather Higginbottom Mark Zuckerman 2009–11 2011– Staff Secretary Lisa Brown Rajesh De Douglas Kramer Joani Walsh 2009–11 2011–12 2012–13 2014– Director, Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Joshua DuBois Melissa Rogers 2009–2013 2013– Assistant to the President for Management and Administration Bradley Kiley Katy Kale Maju Varghese 2009–13 2013–15 2015– Director, Office of Health Reform Nancy-Ann DeParle 2009–11 Director, Oval Office Operations Micaela Fernandez Brian Mosteller 2009–12 2012– Deputy Director, Office of Health Reform Jeanne Lambrew 2009–2011 Personal Aide to the President Reggie Love Marvin Nicholson 2009–11 2011– Director, Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy Carol Browner 2009–11 Personal Secretary to the President Katie Johnson Anita Decker Breckenridge Ferial Govashiri 2009–11 2011–14 2014– Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Heather Zichal Dan Utech 2009–2013 2013– Special Projects Coordinator and Confidential Assistant to the President Eugene Kang 2009–11 Director, Council on Environmental Quality Nancy Sutley Michael Boots 2009–2014 2014– Director, Office of National AIDS Policy Jeffrey Crowley Grant Cofax Douglas Brooks 2009–2011 2012–2014 2014– Chief of Staff to the First Lady   Jackie Norris Susan Sher Christina Tchen 2009 2009–10 2011– Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy Gil Kerlikowske Michael Botticelli 2009–14 2014– White House Social Secretary Desirée Rogers Julianna Smoot Jeremy Bernard Deesha Dyer 2009–10 2010–11 2011–15 2015– Director, Office of Urban Affairs Adolfo Carrión Jr. Racquel Russell 2009–2010 2010– Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy John Holdren 2009– *Senate-confirmation pending.   †Remained from previous administration(s).
Office of the Vice President Position Appointee Chief of Staff to the Vice President Steve Ricchetti Counsel to the Vice President Cynthia Hogan Counselor to the Vice President Mike Donilon Assistant to the Vice President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison Evan Ryan Assistant to the Vice President and Director of Communications Shailagh Murray Deputy Chief of Staff to the Vice President Shailagh Murray Deputy National Security Adviser to the Vice President Brian McKeon Residence Manager and Social Secretary for the Vice President and Second Lady Carlos Elizondo National Security Adviser to the Vice President Colin Kahl Position Appointee Chief of Staff to the Second Lady Catherine M. Russell Director of Administration for the Office of the Vice President Moises Vela Domestic Policy Adviser to the Vice President Terrell McSweeny Chief Economist and Economic Policy Adviser to the Vice President Jared Bernstein Press Secretary to the Vice President Elizabeth Alexander Deputy Press Secretary to the Vice President Annie Tomasini Director of Legislative Affairs Sudafi Henry Director of Communications for the Second Lady Courtney O’Donnell

White House Office
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