Klain will coordinate the government’s response to the Ebola outbreak.
Tracie Mauriello, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette | October 17, 2014
(MCT) — President Barack Obama this morning tapped Washington, D.C., lawyer and venture capitalist Ron Klain, former chief of staff to two vice presidents, to coordinate the government’s response to the Ebola outbreak.
According to the White House, his job will be “to ensure that efforts to protect the American people by detecting, isolating and treating Ebola patients in this country are properly integrated but don’t distract from the aggressive commitment to stopping Ebola at the source in West Africa.”
Mr. Klain is president of Case Holdings and general counsel at Revolution LLC, a technology-oriented venture capital firm.
As former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden, Mr. Klain helped oversee implementation of the Recovery Act. He previously worked as chief of staff to former Vice President Al Gore and to former Attorney General Janet Reno.
He is a graduate of Harvard Law School, where he edited the law review and won the Sears Prize for highest grade average in 1985. He also served as law clerk to former Supreme Court Justice Byron White.
As Ebola czar, Mr. Klain will report to Homeland Security Adviser Lisa Monaco and National Security Adviser Susan Rice.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who held a news conference this morning in Pittsburgh on Pennsylvania’s Ebola preparedness, said he's sure Mr. Klain will have access to the expertise he needs.
"The person has to be someone who can get bureaucracies to function better, can get agencies to coordinate better, and sometimes the only way to do that is through a White House appointee," he said.
He added that Mr. Klain’s role will be as “more of a quarterback there to make sure all the pieces are working together as opposed to someone who has a particular subject matter" expertise.
In a statement, Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Upper St. Clair, called the appointment “shocking” and “tone deaf to what the American people are concerned about.”
“Installing yet another political appointee who has no medical background or infectious disease control experience will do little to reassure Americans who are increasingly losing confidence with the administration’s Ebola strategy.”
Staff writer Molly Born contributed.
©2014 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Distributed by MCT Information Services.
According to the White House, his job will be “to ensure that efforts to protect the American people by detecting, isolating and treating Ebola patients in this country are properly integrated but don’t distract from the aggressive commitment to stopping Ebola at the source in West Africa.”
Mr. Klain is president of Case Holdings and general counsel at Revolution LLC, a technology-oriented venture capital firm.
As former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden, Mr. Klain helped oversee implementation of the Recovery Act. He previously worked as chief of staff to former Vice President Al Gore and to former Attorney General Janet Reno.
He is a graduate of Harvard Law School, where he edited the law review and won the Sears Prize for highest grade average in 1985. He also served as law clerk to former Supreme Court Justice Byron White.
As Ebola czar, Mr. Klain will report to Homeland Security Adviser Lisa Monaco and National Security Adviser Susan Rice.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who held a news conference this morning in Pittsburgh on Pennsylvania’s Ebola preparedness, said he's sure Mr. Klain will have access to the expertise he needs.
"The person has to be someone who can get bureaucracies to function better, can get agencies to coordinate better, and sometimes the only way to do that is through a White House appointee," he said.
He added that Mr. Klain’s role will be as “more of a quarterback there to make sure all the pieces are working together as opposed to someone who has a particular subject matter" expertise.
In a statement, Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Upper St. Clair, called the appointment “shocking” and “tone deaf to what the American people are concerned about.”
“Installing yet another political appointee who has no medical background or infectious disease control experience will do little to reassure Americans who are increasingly losing confidence with the administration’s Ebola strategy.”
Staff writer Molly Born contributed.
©2014 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Distributed by MCT Information Services.
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