Reports: Jeff Zients to Be President Biden’s Next Chief of Staff

Lawmakers return with major issues taking months to unfold

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January 23, 2023 05:20 AM

Lawmakers return with major issues taking months to unfold

Washington Focus

Congress returns with most work centering on getting ready for legislative battles ahead, including the biggest near-term issue: increasing or suspending the $31.4 trillion debt limit. Both parties need to complete organizational duties, including an accord on committee ratios, while Democrats need to complete panel rosters, including House Ag Committee members.

White House chief of staff Ron Klain, 61, to step down after State of the Union address. Klain, the top aide guiding President Joe Biden’s first two years in office, intends to step down in the weeks following the president’s State of the Union address, the New York Times first reported (link). Klain has clearly leaned to the progressive wing in Biden’s coalition.

Biden is expected to tap Jeff Zients (pronounced Zi-ents) as his next chief of staff, Politico according to various reports, including the Washington Post (link) and Politico (link). A former Obama administration official and close Biden confidant, Zients ran the White House’s Covid response, winning internal praise for his cross-government management skills and initial success in bringing the pandemic under control. Zients has been leading an outside review on how to organize Biden’s White House — and his Cabinet — for the last two years of his first term.

WaPo: “Zients left the White House in April after steering the administration’s pandemic response and leading the largest vaccination campaign in U.S. history. He returned to the White House in the fall to help Klain prepare for staff turnover after the midterms — a project that was ultimately limited in scope, as few senior staff members have left across the administration. But, in recent weeks, Klain has assigned him different projects, which some viewed as preparing Zients for the top role, people familiar with the arrangement said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters.”

Politico: “The president, a person familiar with the decision said, views Zients as a ‘master implementer.’ But what Zients has in organization acumen he lacks in extensive political experience. He will likely be relied on to manage the day-to-day workings of the White House, allowing other senior advisers to focus more on Biden’s expected reelection campaign, one person familiar with the matter said. … Zients’ selection is also likely to disappoint some Democrats who saw Klain’s exit as a prime opportunity for Biden to appoint a woman or person of color as his top aide.”

Klain likely will stay around for a transition period to help the next chief settle into the post. Klain lasted longer than any other Democratic president’s first chief of staff in more than half a century.

Besides Zients, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack was among the individuals cited as a possible new chief of staff. Others included Labor Secretary Martin J. Walsh; former Gov. Jack A. Markell of Delaware, now serving as ambassador to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development; Anita Dunn, a senior adviser to Biden; Steven J. Ricchetti, the counselor to the president; and Susan Rice, the White House domestic policy adviser. The NYT reported Dunn flatly ruled out taking the job in conversations with colleagues

Upshot: The departure will come as Biden prepares to announce his re-election campaign and the White House is facing scrutiny from congressional Republicans on classified documents found in Biden’s former office at a Washington D.C. think tank and his Wilmington, Delaware home (see next item).

More classified materials found at President Biden’s home. FBI investigators on Friday found additional classified material while conducting a search of President Joe Biden’s home in Wilmington, Delaware. After being given full access to Biden’s home — including personally handwritten notes, files, papers, and binders that covered decades of his work — the Justice Department took possession of six items. Those items, according to the president’s personal attorney Bob Bauer, consisted of “documents with classification markings and surrounding materials.” The Justice Department also took some of Biden’s handwritten notes from his vice-presidential years to further review them. Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed a special counsel, Robert Hur, to investigate Biden’s handling of the classified documents. In addition, the Republican-led House Committee on Oversight and Accountability launched its own investigation. Biden told reporters Thursday he has “no regrets” that he didn’t reveal the first discovery of classified documents in November, shortly before the midterm elections. “We’re fully cooperating and looking forward to getting this resolved quickly,” Biden said. “I think you’re going to find there’s nothing there.”

Is Supreme Court ruling coming soon on WOTUS? The Supreme Court is expected to announce its first opinion of the term on Monday following an unusual delay from historical trends (link). The court’s website on Friday updated to designate Monday as an opinion issuance day. It will also mark the first time the justices return to the pre-pandemic tradition of announcing their decisions live in the courtroom.

Justices release most of the court’s decisions in May and June but tend to hand down the first decision in the late fall or early winter, usually in a noncontroversial case. The Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) really doesn’t fit being noncontroversial but a Bloomberg item on Friday (link) speculated that a WOTUS decision could be announced.

Tax season officially gets underway on January 23, the first day the IRS will start accepting 2022 federal income tax returns. You still have until April 18 as the deadline. What happened to the traditional April 15 deadline? It falls on a Saturday this year, and the following Monday is Emancipation Day in Washington, DC, where the IRS is headquartered.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Rostin Behnam and four of the agency’s commissioners will speak at the Commodity Markets Council’s State of the Industry Conference, which begins Monday.

Jason Furman, former economic adviser to President Barack Obama, joins Washington Post Live on Wednesday to discuss the risk of the federal government defaulting on its debt and the possible effects on the global economy.

Officials from the Departments of Commerce, Labor and Transportation will join the Brookings Institution on Wednesday for an event on “Accelerating federal, state, and local investments in the U.S. infrastructure workforce.”

Former President Donald Trump is expected to make his first public appearance on the 2024 election campaign trail on Saturday, when he will name his South Carolina leadership team.

Kaine to seek a third term in Senate. Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said he would seek a third term on Friday, a decision providing some relief to fellow Democrats who face a difficult map in their effort to keep their majority in 2024.

Monday, Jan. 23

· Ricketts swearing in. Senate holds a re-enactment swearing-in ceremony for Sen.-designate Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.).

· Rebuilding Ukraine. Atlantic Council virtual discussion on “Rebuilding Ukraine: Principles and Policies.”

· U.S./Japan relations. Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft webinar on “The Kishida Visit and U.S./Japan Defense Relations: Creating a More Stable Asia?”

· Puerto Rico and renewables. National Renewable Energy Laboratory virtual discussion on the one-year progress update for the Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transition to 100% Renewable Energy (PR100) study.

· U.S. Supreme Court rulings. Some expect the U.S. Supreme Court to start issuing decisions for their session, with Bloomberg speculating that the ruling on WOTUS will come.

Tuesday, Jan. 24

· Grid resiliency. Department of Energy virtual meeting of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board to discuss draft recommendations on grid resiliency.

· U.S./China economic cooperation. Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual debate on “U.S./China Economic Cooperation.”

· Japan outlook. Brookings Institution discussion on “Japan in 2023.”

· Antibiotic resistance. Health and Human Services Department virtual meeting of the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria; runs through Wednesday.

· Entertainment tickets and consumers. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on “That’s the Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment.”

· FTC and labor markets. Hudson Institute virtual discussion on “The FTC, Labor Markets, and Agency Authority,” focusing on non-compete clauses in employment contracts.

· Global outlook. CQ Roll Call and FiscalNote virtual discussion on “2023 Global Forecast: Top Issues You Should Monitor Around the World.”

· Republican party agenda. Washington Post Live virtual discussion with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) on “The Republican Party and Legislative Agenda.”

· Iran situation. Heritage Foundation discussion on “The Iran Threat: What to Expect in 2023.”

· Carbon capture. United States Energy Association virtual discussion on “Cost of Capturing CO2 from Industrial Sources.”

· Offshore wind energy. American Council on Renewable Energy virtual discussion on “The Benefit and Urgency of Planned Offshore Wind Transmission.”

· China issues. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion with Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jose Fernandez on “strategic economic competition with China, efforts to make supply chains more secure and resilient, the clean energy transition, and other strategic economic initiatives.”

· Clean Air Act litigation. Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies’ Regulatory Transparency Project webinar on “Litigation Update: Ohio v. Environmental Protection Agency,” focusing on the EPA’s reinstatement of the waiver given to California for its greenhouse gas stands and zero emission vehicle sales mandate, as preempted by the Clean Air Arc (CAA).

Wednesday, Jan. 25

· Government accountability and overreach. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) and Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) news conference on HR 277, the “REINS Act” and “House Republicans work to limit executive overreach and increase government accountability and transparency.”

· Hong Kong’s future. Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion on “Assessing Hong Kong’s Future as a Global Business Hub.”

· Clean energy transition. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace discussion on “Advancing the Clean Energy Transition in 2023.”

· China’s Silk Road. International Institute for Strategic Studies discussion on “The Digital Silk Road: China’s Technological Rise and the Geopolitics of Cyberspace.”

· Homeland Security conference. Final day of the Institute for Defense and Government Advancement Homeland Security Week Conference with remarks from Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) on “Congressional Priorities for Homeland Security” and Acting Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Troy Miller on “Securing the U.S./Mexico Border: The Way Forward at CBP (Customs and Border Protection).”

· Globalization. Peterson Institute for International Economics virtual discussion on “Globalization is dead — long live globalization!”

· Antibiotic resistance. Final day of the Health and Human Services Department virtual meeting of the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria.

· Climate risks. Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion on “Mining, Climate Risks, and the Western Hemisphere.”

· Western sanctions on Russia. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace virtual discussion on “How Russia Handles Western Sanctions.”

· SEC. Securities and Exchange Commission virtual meeting.

· Global threats. Senate Foreign Relations Committee closed briefing on “Around the World Threat Assessment.”

· Western businesses in China. Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies’ in House Counsel Network webinar on “Western Business in China: Can We Sell Without Selling Out?”

· Climate and carbon emissions. American Security Project virtual discussion on “Innovating Out of the Climate Crisis: Carbon Emissions.”

· Infrastructure investment. Brookings Institution discussion on “Accelerating federal, state, and local investments in the U.S. infrastructure workforce.”

· Debt ceiling. Washington Post Live virtual discussion on “The Debt Ceiling.”

· Global outlook. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion on “A Global Outlook,” focusing on “the current situations in Ukraine and China, and the state of the U.S. defense industrial base.”

· Russian war in Ukraine. Center for Strategic and International Studies (virtual discussion on a new report, “The Russian Arctic Threat: Consequences of the Ukraine War.”

Thursday, Jan. 26

· Russian aggression. Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on “Countering Russian Aggression: Ukraine and Beyond.”

· Policy issues. George Mason University’s (GMU) Mercatus Center second annual antitrust forum on “Policy in Transition,” including FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson and former FTC Commissioner Joshua Wright participating in a discussion on “The FTC and the Rule of Law.”

· State of the energy industry. United States Energy Association 19th Annual State of the Energy Industry Forum.

· China defense actions. U.S./China Economic and Security Review Commission hearing on “China’s Military Diplomacy and Overseas Security Activities.”

· Trade trends in 2023. Washington International Trade Association virtual discussion on “The Trade Reporters on Trade Trends 2023.”

· Rural health care, other issues. Federal Communications Commission open meeting to discuss, ensuring 988 reliability and resiliency, rural health care program, restricted adjudicatory matter, and enforcement bureau actions.

· Russia’s war machine. Wilson Center Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies and the Global Europe Program discussion on “Silicon Lifeline: Western Electronics at the Heart of Russia’s War Machine.”

· Economic outlook. Atlantic virtual discussion on “Economic Outlook for 2023.”

· FY 2024 spending. Environmental and Energy Study Institute virtual briefing on “Budget and Appropriations.”

Friday, January 27

· Pandemic pathogen care. National Institutes of Health virtual meeting of the Office of the Secretary to finalize the draft recommendations and findings from the NSABB Working Groups to Review and Evaluate Potential Pandemic Pathogen Care and Oversight (PC3O) Policy and U.S. Government Policies for the Oversight of Dual Use Research of Concern (DURC).

Key Economic Reports for the Week

Federal Reserve speakers are in a blackout period ahead of the February FOMC meeting, but economic reports will focus on updates on the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index, new home sales, durable goods orders, and consumer sentiment to see if they reinforce the expectation by some for a recession in the U.S. and set the table for a 25-point rate increase from the Fed, instead of a 50-point hike.

Inflation updates are due from the U.K., Australia, Spain, Sweden and Singapore on Wednesday. Japan will also report its Consumer Price Index cost of living measure.

Monday, Jan. 23

Conference Board releases its Leading Economic Index for December. Consensus estimate is for a 0.6% month-over-month decline, after a 1% drop in November.

Tuesday, Jan. 24

S&P Global releases both its Manufacturing and Services Purchasing Managers’ Indexes for January. Economists forecast a 46.5 reading for the Manufacturing PMI and a 47.5 reading for the Services PMI. This compares with 46.2 and 44.7, respectively, in December.

Wednesday, Jan. 25

MBA Mortgage Applications
Bank of Canada monetary policy committee rate announcement with the central bank expected to raise its rate a further 25 basis-points to 4.50% with the possibility of it signaling a pause in further increases. The central bank has signaled that it is at or near the end of its tightening campaign with Canada’s economy showing signs of slowing growth and easing inflation.

Thursday, Jan. 26

Jobless Claims: The U.S. Labor Department reports the number of worker filings for unemployment benefits in the week ended Jan. 21. Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, declined in the week ended Jan. 14 to the lowest level since September, suggesting the labor market remained tight.
Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reports fourth-quarter gross-domestic-product growth. The economy is expected to have grown at a 2.5% annual rate, following a 3.2% increase for the third quarter.
Census Bureau releases the durable goods report for December. The consensus call is for new orders for manufactured durable goods to increase 2.5%, to $277 billion.
Fed Balance Sheet
Money Supply

Friday, Jan. 27

BEA reports personal income and outlays for December. Personal income is expected to rise 0.2% month over month compared with a 0.4% gain in November, while spending is seen declining 0.1% after rising 0.1% previously. The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge, the core personal-consumption expenditures price index, is forecast to increase 4.4% year over year, three-tenths of a percentage point less than in November.
The University of Michigan publishes its final reading of consumer sentiment for January. A reading earlier this month showed that sentiment reached its highest level in nine months due to easing concerns over the possibility of a recession and inflation.
The National Association of Realtors reports December pending sales of U.S. homes based on contract signings. Pending home sales fell in November for the sixth consecutive month as the housing market buckled under high mortgage rates and weakened demand.
EU, European Banking Authority launches an EU-wide stress test of banks.

Key USDA & international Ag & Energy Reports and Events

Market focus is on South American crops and weather. Pro Farmer sources signal the Argentine soybean crop has been more negatively impacted than most trade and USDA, Argentine gov’t forecasts. Contacts peg the crop at 33-35 million tons.

The European Commission will publish its monthly crop conditions report Monday, while the two-day Paris Grain Conference is scheduled to begin Thursday.

On the energy front, France is set for further strike action that may affect oil facilities. Chevron will report 4Q earnings Friday.

Monday, Jan. 23

Ag reports and events:

Export Inspections
MARS monthly report on EU crop conditions
Brazil’s Unica to release sugar output, cane crush data during the week
Holiday: China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam