Susan Rice to Step Down as Domestic Policy Adviser
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - US domestic policy adviser Susan Rice is stepping down from her post. Rice, who served as US ambassador to the UN, helped the Biden administration with expanding the Affordable Care Act, getting his Inflation Reduction Act into law, and passing gun control legislation.
The move comes as the White House is facing controversy over its handling of migrant children who crossed the Southern border.
“As the only person to serve as both National Security Advisor and Domestic Policy Advisor, Susan’s record of public service makes history,” said US President Joe Biden in a statement announcing the departure. “But what sets her apart as a leader and colleague is the seriousness with which she takes her role and the urgency and tenacity she brings, her bias towards action and results, and the integrity, humility and humor with which she does this work.”
Rice’s departure leaves a major hole within the top ranks of the White House right as it gears up for a likely re-election campaign and as it faces a stare down with congressional Republicans over raising the debt limit. Among those being eyed as a replacement for her include Neera Tanden, Biden’s staff secretary and a senior adviser, four people with knowledge of the deliberations told POLITICO. Separately, a top White House official said no replacement had been identified yet.
One former administration official said White House aides were talking openly about Tanden’s consideration for Rice’s job over the weekend, calling her potential appointment “pretty damn firm.”
Rice served as UN ambassador at the beginning of the Obama administration and later became President Barack Obama’s national security adviser during Obama’s second term. Rice has led the White House Domestic Policy Council since the start of the Biden administration.