Bill Daley To Resign As White House Chief Of Staff Sooner Than Expected

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jan 9, 2012 7:40PM

There is some shuffling at the Obama Administration. White House chief of staff Bill Daley is stepping down at the end of the month. Taking Daley's place is budget director Jacob Lew.

Daley took over as chief of staff after Rahm Emanuel resigned for his successful run for mayor of Chicago. He had previously announced that he would resign after the 2012 elections and reportedly surprised Obama when he tendered his resignation notice last week. Daley told Obama it was simply time for him to return to Chicago.

Daley's tenure as chief of staff has not been without its struggles. An interview with Daley on the website Politico provided a look inside the Obama White House as Obama geared up for his re-election campaign. Daley's day-to-day duties were later handed to trusted aide Pete Rouse in November, allowing Daley to focus on high-level managerial duties and serve as an advisor to the president.

Daley will steer the White House staff through the State of the Union address while Lew helps put together Obama's budget proposal. Lew will be tasked with helping the Obama Administration deal with a fierce Republican opposition in the House of Representatives on budget and economic proposals in an election year.