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Ron Klain

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Not to be confused with Ron Kleen.

Ron Klain
Klain in 2009
White House Chief of Staff
Designate
Assuming office
January 20, 2021
PresidentJoe Biden (elect)
SucceedingMark Meadows
White House Ebola Response Coordinator
In office
October 22, 2014 – February 15, 2015
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byOffice abolished
Chief of Staff to the Vice President
In office
January 20, 2009 – January 14, 2011
Vice PresidentJoe Biden
Preceded byDavid Addington
Succeeded byBruce Reed
In office
November 1, 1995 – August 3, 1999
Vice PresidentAl Gore
Preceded byJack Quinn
Succeeded byCharles Burson
Personal details
Born (1961-08-08) August 8, 1961 (age 63)
Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMonica Medina
Alma materGeorgetown University (BA)
Harvard University (JD)

Ronald A. Klain (born August 8, 1961) is an American political consultant, civil servant, and attorney. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as chief of staff to two U.S. vice presidents: Al Gore (1995–1999) and Joe Biden (2009–2011). After there were reported Ebola virus cases in the United States, he was appointed by Barack Obama to serve as the White House Ebola Response Coordinator in late 2014, serving into early 2015.[1]

In 2020, Klain joined Biden's presidential campaign as a senior advisor.[2][3]

Early life and education

Klain was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, to Jewish parents.[4] He graduated from North Central High School in 1979 and was on the school's Brain Game team which finished as season runner-up. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude from Georgetown University in 1983. In 1987, he received his Juris Doctor degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.[5]

Career

Law clerk and Capitol Hill

Klain was a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Byron White during the 1987 and 1988 terms.[6] From 1989 to 1992, he served as Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary,[7] overseeing the legal staff's work on matters of constitutional law, criminal law, antitrust law, and Supreme Court nominations, including the 1991 Clarence Thomas Supreme Court nomination. He served as Legislative Director for U.S. Representative Ed Markey (D-MA). In 1995, Senator Tom Daschle appointed him the Staff Director of the Senate Democratic Leadership Committee.[5]

Clinton administration

Klain joined the Clinton-Gore campaign in 1992 and was involved in both of Bill Clinton's presidential campaigns.[7] He oversaw Clinton's judicial nominations. In the White House, Klain was Associate Counsel to the President, directing judicial selection efforts and leading the team that won confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.[7] In 1994, he became Chief of Staff and Counselor to Attorney General Janet Reno and in 1995, Chief of Staff to Al Gore.[8]

Gore campaign 1999–2000

During Klain's tenure as Gore's Chief of Staff, he was seen as too loyal to Clinton by some longtime Gore advisors, and in 1999, feuding broke out between Clinton and Gore loyalists. Klain was ousted by Gore campaign chairman Tony Coelho in August 1999. In October 1999, he joined the Washington, D.C. office of the law firm of O'Melveny & Myers.[9] In 2000, Klain returned to the Gore campaign, which named him General Counsel of Gore's Recount Committee.[1]

Lobbying

Klain was signed up as a lobbyist for Fannie Mae until 2005.[10]

2004–2008

During the 2004 presidential campaign early primaries, Klain worked as an adviser to Wesley Clark. During the general election, Klain was heavily involved behind the scenes in John Kerry's campaign.[11]

Klain served as an informal adviser to Evan Bayh who is from Klain's home state of Indiana. In 2005, Klain left his partnership at O'Melveny & Myers to become Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Revolution LLC, a technology venture capital firm launched by AOL co-founder Steve Case.[1] At the time of his October 2014 appointment as Ebola response coordinator, he was General Counsel at Revolution LLC and President of Case Holdings.[12]

Obama administration 2008–2015

On November 12, 2008, Roll Call announced that Klain had been chosen to serve as Chief of Staff to Vice President Joe Biden, the same role he served for Gore.[13][14][15]

Klain had worked with Biden, having served as counsel to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary while Biden chaired that committee and assisted Biden's speechwriting team during the 1988 presidential campaign.[16]

President Obama talks with Ron Klain during presidential debate preparations. Senator John Kerry, at podium, played the role of Mitt Romney during the preparatory sessions.

Klain was mentioned as a possible replacement for White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel,[17] but opted to leave the White House for a position in the private sector in January 2011.[15]

In 2011, amid concerns about whether the now-defunct solar-panel company Solyndra was viable, Klain approved an Obama visit, stating, "The reality is that if POTUS visited 10 such places over the next 10 months, probably a few will be belly-up by election day 2012."[18] On October 17, 2014, Klain was appointed the "Ebola response coordinator" sometimes referred to as Ebola "czar."[19][20][21] His appointment was criticized because Klain, according to Julie Hirschfeld Davis writing in The New York Times, had "no record or expertise in Ebola specifically or public health in general".[20] His term as Ebola response coordinator ended in February 2015.

Since leaving the Obama administration, Klain has worked as an external adviser to the Skoll Foundation Global Threats Fund[22] and is Executive Vice President and General Counsel at the investment firm Revolution LLC.[23][24]

Biden administration

On November 11, 2020, it was reported that Klain would be chief of staff to President-elect Biden.

Personal life

Klain and his wife, Monica Medina, a lawyer and environmental activist who served as Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and is currently at the Walton Family Foundation, have three children.[25]

Klain was portrayed by Kevin Spacey in the HBO film Recount depicting the tumult of the 2000 presidential election.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b c School, Harvard Law. "Ron Klain | Harvard Law School". Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  2. ^ "Biden for President: More Senior Advisors". Democracy in Action. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020.
  3. ^ Parnes, Amie (September 27, 2020). "Meet Joe Biden's chief debate guru". The Hill. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020.
  4. ^ Jewish Daily Forward: "Obama Appoints Ron Klain as Ebola 'Czar' - Former White House Official Is a Top Jewish Lawyer October 17, 2014
  5. ^ a b "Ron Klain". GU Politics. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  6. ^ "Ron Klain". Georgetown Institute of Politics and Public Service McCourt School of Public Policy. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  7. ^ a b c "Ron Klain". Washington Post Politics. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  8. ^ Miller, Zeke J.; Rothman, Lily (December 5, 2014). "What Happened to the 'Future Leaders' of the 1990s?". Time Magazine. Retrieved November 2, 2018.
  9. ^ "Ronald A. Klain | Administrative Conference of the United States". www.acus.gov. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  10. ^ Mosk, Matthew (November 15, 2008). "Some Former Lobbyists Have Key Roles in Obama Transition". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  11. ^ Martin Kasendorf and Richard Benedetto (September 27, 2004). "Kerry, Bush Curtail Schedules as They Prepare for Duel". USA Today. Retrieved May 11, 2012.
  12. ^ Allen, Mike (October 21, 2014). "Sources: Klain may succeed Podesta". Politico. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  13. ^ Koffler, Keith (November 12, 2008). "Sources: Biden Picks Klain to Be Chief of Staff". Roll Call; accessed October 18, 2014.
  14. ^ a b Allen, Mike (November 13, 2008). "Klain accepts job as Biden chief of staff". Politico.
  15. ^ a b Cooper, Helene C. (January 4, 2011). "Ron Klain Leaving Vice President's Staff". The New York Times.
  16. ^ Cramer, Richard Ben (1992). What It Takes: The Way to the White House. Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-74649-8. p. 482.
  17. ^ Henry, Ed (September 8, 2010). "Who might replace Rahm Emanuel?". CNN. Archived from the original on September 10, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  18. ^ Madhani, Aamer (October 3, 2011). "E-mails show White House worried about Solyndra deal". USA Today. Retrieved September 28, 2012.
  19. ^ Jake Tapper (October 17, 2014). "Obama will name Ron Klain as Ebola czar". CNN. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  20. ^ a b Davis, Julie Hirschfeld; Shear, Michael D. (October 17, 2014). "Ron Klain, Chief of Staff to 2 Vice Presidents, Is Named Ebola Czar". New York Times. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  21. ^ Lavender, Paige (October 17, 2014). "Obama To Appoint Ron Klain As Ebola Czar". The Huffington Post. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  22. ^ Klain, Ron (August 2, 2016). "The Growing Zika Threat–and Congress's Inaction". WSJ. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  23. ^ "Team Member: Ron Klain". Revolution. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  24. ^ "Ronald Klain". The Atlantic. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  25. ^ "NOAA Leadership: Monica Medina". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration website; retrieved August 14, 2013.

See also

Wikiquote has quotations related to Ron Klain.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ron Klain.
Political offices
Preceded by Chief of Staff to the Vice President
1995–1999 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief of Staff to the Vice President
2009–2011 		Succeeded by
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