(The Hill) — The White House has faced a slew of departures recently, with several top officials announcing at once they are moving on after 18 months in the administration during a time when President Joe Biden’s job approval rating continues to sink amid consistently poor marks politically.
While 18 months in is typical for staff turnover in the White House, it comes at a perilous moment for Democrats ahead of crucial midterm elections.
“Given the complex challenges that the administration is facing, these departures are coming at an inopportune time,” said Democratic strategist Joel Payne.
Still, Payne added, “at this point in an administration, it is not abnormal to experience attrition.”
One senior administration official acknowledged that many aides are “tapped out.”
“It’s been a long few years,” the official said. “The burnout is real. It might not be the ideal time to leave with everything going on, but it’s the right time.”
The official explained the early summer months are considered the best time to leave before midterms season begins. “And then you’re really locked in.”
The departure of White House Counsel Dana Remus, who is set to leave next month and be replaced by her top deputy Stuart Delery, was this week’s most major announcement. Remus oversaw the selection of Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve on the Supreme Court and the filling of a slew of federal judicial seats while she served in her role, which is considered one of the most challenging jobs in the West Wing.
Her departure comes ahead of what is expected to be a GOP takeover of the closely-split House and Senate chambers after November’s midterm election. The White House counsel’s office would be in the spotlight to respond to requests expected by Republican lawmakers who would lead probes into the administration.
Former Rep. Chris Carney (D-Pa.), a Biden ally and senior policy adviser at Nossaman LLP, argued that Remus’ departure offers good timing for the White House to prepare for such investigations.
“I think it would be more surprising if she left in the fall. I think that her timing now provides Delery more than ample time to get prepared for the kinds of onslaught they expect from Republicans in the fall,” he said.
Still, others see the host of departures as a precarious situation for the White House with a president facing consistently low approval numbers, increasingly high gas prices, and stubborn inflation.
“It doesn’t look good,” said one Democratic strategist. “The perception from the outside is that it’s not the place you want to be. There’s a lot of finger-pointing going around right now. It doesn’t seem like it’s humming the way it should be.”
But some new and familiar faces have already begun replacing those who have left.
This week, Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, was named senior adviser to the president for public engagement and will replace former Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.), who left the White House last month.
Bottoms will take on a top adviser role in the West Wing after serving as vice chairwoman of civic engagement and voter protection at the Democratic National Committee, bringing some political chops to the job while Biden looks towards the midterms.
“I think bringing Lance Bottoms on was kind of a genius stroke and I’m very glad that she agreed to do it. She does have a very broad background in Democratic politics. Her positions in politics, and in Georgia politics in particular, will be very helpful going into the midterms but also going into 2024,” Carney said.
Julie Chavez Rodriguez was promoted this week to senior adviser and assistant to the president and plans to continue serving as director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Chavez Rodriquez, who…
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