PD_EOP_Cabinet-Affairs

Position Description

Cabinet Affairs, White house

Overview

Position Type
PA

Agency Mission

This office is the primary liaison between the president and his cabinet. The office coordinates communications, policy, and logistics between the White House and the cabinet, as well as manages issues that affect multiple federal agencies.¹ _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/participate/internships/departments#Cabinet}

Position Overview

Serves as the president’s primary liaison to the cabinet secretaries and their departments and agencies, and is said to make sure there are no surprises for the president.

Compensation

$176,461 in 2016² _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/21stcenturygov/tools/salaries}

Position Reports to

Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy

Responsibilities

Management Scope

The staff includes the cabinet secretary, the deputy cabinet secretary, three deputy directors and a special assistant.³ The size and scope of management varies from administration to administration. Currently there are about 10 employees in the office. _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/participate/internships/departments#Cabinet}

Primary Responsibilities

® Serves as liaison between the cabinet secretaries and the White House.
® Manages relationships with cabinet secretaries, ensuring their integration and input into White House decision-making, and their accountability for presidential initiatives.
® Mentors cabinet secretaries on cabinet duties.
® Assists the cabinet secretaries in preparing for a cabinet meeting by identifying issues of critical importance which are then discussed and developed with the deputy chief of staff for policy.
® Assists the cabinet secretaries in providing input to the four policy councils.
® Responsible for assisting relevant agencies and the administration when following up on a policy decision.
® Frequently serves as the president’s liaison with cabinet secretaries through the chief of staff.
® Prepares summaries for the president from the weekly cabinet reports and manages those reports.
® Monitors and coordinates the travel and schedules of cabinet secretaries, working with the Appointments and Scheduling Office.⁴ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}

Strategic Goals and Priorities

[Depends on the policy priorities of the administration]

Requirements and Competencies

Requirements

® Confidence of the president

Competencies

® Ability to tease out from the Cabinet what problems are arising, not just what is going well

Past Appointees

Broderick Johnson (2014 to 2017) – Senior advisor to the Obama presidential campaign in 2012; Senior congressional affairs advisor to the Kerry campaign in 2004; Deputy Assistant to President Clinton for Legislative Affairs⁵ _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/author/broderick-johnson}
Danielle Gray (2013 to 2014) – Deputy Director of the National Economic Council and Deputy Assistant to the President for Economic Policy; Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division; Associate Counsel to the President⁶ _{https://www.omm.com/professionals/danielle-carim-gray/}
Chris Lu (2011 to 2013) – Executive Director of the Obama/Biden Transition Project; Legislative Director and Acting Chief of Staff for Senator Obama; Deputy Counsel to Representative Henry A. Waxman on the staff of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee⁷ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}
Endnotes
This position description was created with the help of Martha Kumar from the White House Transition Project, which provides information to a new White House staff about their individual offices thereby streamlining the process of transition from one administration to the next.
The Partnership’s Center for Presidential Transition helps ensure the efficient transfer of power that our country deserves. The Center’s Ready to Govern· initiative assists candidates with the transition, works with Congress to reform the transition process, develops management recommendations to address our government’s operational challenges, and trains new political appointees.