Denis McDonough

White House Chief of Staff (since January 2013); Deputy National Security Adviser (October 2010-2013)

(Pete Souza/ White House)

Why He Matters

President Obama named deputy national security adviser Denis McDonough, one of his closest confidants who served in his Senate and campaign offices, as his new chief of staff on Jan. 25, 2013. McDonough replaces Jack Lew, who was recently nominated to head the Treasury Department.

McDonough has carved out a reputation as a fiercely loyal and demanding aide who has played a key role in some of the administration’s highest profile decisions, including the U.S. military drawdowns in Iraq and Afghanistan, the response to the Japanese tsunami and the handling of the attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya.

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Corrections?

News From Around The Web

Face In the News: Denis McDonough defends NSA via CBS News

Face the Nation transcripts June 16, 2013: McDonough and Rogers on NSA surveillance via CBS News

Video: June 6: McDonough, Rogers & more via CBS News

Cheney, Denis McDonough among Sunday show guests talking about Snowden via NBC News

McDonough: Obama will speak about NSA via The Hill

Video

McDonough on Syria: Not going to rush into a war

White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough explains how the "scope and scale" of U.S. aid to Syrian rebels will expand.

Video

McDonough: President doesn't think program has violated privacy

White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough says the president does not feel as if the National Security Agency's phone surveillance program has violated Americans' privacy.

Post Politics

Denis McDonough: Iranian election a 'potentially hopeful sign'

Sean Sullivan

The White House chief of staff expresses cautious optimism following Iran's presidential election.

Post Politics

Denis McDonough: Obama does not feel Americans' privacy has been violated

Sean Sullivan

The White House chief of staff defends the government's sweeping surveillance efforts.

News From Around The Web

McDonough: Iranian election a ‘potentially hopeful sign’ via The Hill

Obama does not feel Americans' privacy violated: chief of staff via Reuters

McDonough: We Don’t Know Where Snowden Is via Washington Free Beacon

North Korea suggests high-level talks with U.S. via Los Angeles Times

Rubio Wants Changes to Immigration Bill; Jeb's Parents Split on White House Run via The Atlantic

The Fix

Sunday show roundup: Surveillance and Syria dominate the conversation

Sean Sullivan

White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said President Obama does not feel Americans' privacy has been violated.

Article

Obama defends top secret NSA data gathering of phone records, Internet traffic to US public

(The Guardian, File / Associated Press)

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama defended top secret National Security Agency spying programs as legal in a lengthy interview Monday, and called them transparent — even though they are authorized in secret.

Article

Current, former officials back US data trawling in wake of new surveillance revelations

(Kin Cheung / Associated Press)

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Current and former top U.S. officials on Sunday defended the government’s collection of phone and Internet data following new revelations about the secret surveillance programs, saying the operations were essential in disrupting terrorist plots and did not infringe on Americans’ civil liberties.

At a Glance

Career History: Acting NSC Chief of Staff (since October 2009-October 2010); Director of Strategic Communications, National Security Council (since January 2009-October 2010) Member of President Barack Obama 's transition team (Nov. 2008 to Jan. 2009); Foreign Policy adviser to Barack Obama 's 2008 Presidential campaign (2006 to 2008); Center for American Progress, Senior Fellow (2004 to 2006)
Birthday: Dec. 2, 1969
Hometown: Stillwater, Minn.
Alma Mater: St. John's University (Minnesota); Georgetown University, M.S. in Foreign Service, 1996.

Religion: Catholic
Office: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Web site

Path to Power

McDonough was a staffer on the House International Relations Committee from 1996 through 1999. He then joined Daschle's (D-S.D.) foreign policy team, where he worked until 2004, advising him on terrorism, AIDS and Middle East policy.

When Daschle lost his reelection bid, McDonough followed him to the Center for American Progress, a progressive think-tank founded by former Clinton Chief of Staff John D. Podesta. There he researched health-care policy as a senior fellow and adviser to Daschle.

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The Issues

McDonough has argued for a common-good approach to foreign policy, saying that the U.S. must address problems like global warming and poverty by taking approaches that will benefit other countries as well. He has spoken in support of a cap-and-trade system and called on the U.S. to make a serious commitment to reducing greenhouse gases.

Killing bin Laden

Under McDonough's watch at the NSC, the world's most-wanted terrorist, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin-Laden was killed by U.S. special forces after years of painstaking intelligence work.

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The Network

As a fellow at the Center for American Progress, McDonough has relationships with Obama transition co-chair and CAP head John Podesta, CAP chief operating officer Neera Tanden and several other prominent Obama backers.

As a former chief of staff for Tom Daschle, McDonough is also a part of the growing list of Daschle alumnae that worked on the 2008 Obama campaign and in the Obama White House. Obama's Senate chief of staff, Pete Rouse, is a a senior White House adviser, and Mark Lippert, also worked for Daschle before becoming NSC chief of staff in the Obama administration.

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Additional Resources

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