“President-elect Joe Biden will nominate longtime Obama aide Denis McDonough for secretary of Veterans Affairs, according to two people with knowledge of the decision.”
“McDonough served as former President Barack Obama’s chief of staff from 2013 until 2017.”
“McDonough had not been widely talked about as a leading contender for the VA job, which has traditionally gone to a veteran. The public discussion had largely focused on former Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg, Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth and more recently, former Pennsylvania Rep. Patrick Murphy.”
“Biden picked McDonough because he felt he was crisis-tested and knows how to pull the levers of government, according to a source close to the transition. Biden was also impressed by McDonough regularly visiting Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and making a point of visiting troops in the field while he was deputy national security adviser under Obama.”
“’When I received the call from President-elect Biden, I assured him that I will represent the voices of all veterans at every level, on every issue, every day,’ McDonough wrote on Twitter following…” Read the full article here.
Source: Biden to tap Denis McDonough for Veterans Affairs – By Megan Cassella and Alex Thompson, December 10, 2020. POLITICO.
