Neera Tanden will replace Susan Rice as head of President Biden’s Domestic Policy Council, the White House announced Friday, becoming the first Asian American to serve in the role.
“I am pleased to announce that Neera Tanden will continue to drive the formulation and implementation of my domestic policy, from economic mobility and racial equity to health care, immigration and education,” Biden said in a statement.
Tanden, 52, has served as senior adviser and staff secretary to Biden since 2021, overseeing aspects of the president’s domestic, economic and national security teams. Tanden also held policy advising positions in the Clinton and Obama administrations, and was the former president of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank.
During his transition, Biden named Tanden as his pick for director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, but Republicans threatened to torpedo her confirmation, and Tanden later withdrew her nomination.
Biden credited Tanden as a “key architect” of the Affordable Care Act and for helping shape policies on clean energy subsidies and gun issues that would later become part of his agenda. Tanden, whose parents immigrated from India, has spoken in the past about being raised by a single mother who relied on government assistance.
“While growing up, Neera relied on some of the critical programs that she will oversee as Domestic Policy Advisor, and I know those insights will serve my Administration and the American people well,” Biden said.
In the same announcement, the White House named Stefanie Feldman as assistant to the president and staff secretary, and Zayn Siddique as principal deputy of the Domestic Policy Council. Siddique, a lawyer who clerked for Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, helps develop White House domestic policies. Feldman has worked with Biden since he was vice president and is “one of my longest-serving and most trusted advisors,” Biden said.
The White House announced last week that Rice would step down as Biden’s domestic policy adviser in late May. As chair of the Domestic Policy Council, Rice was responsible for overseeing a vast policy portfolio that included economic mobility, health care and immigration.
Rice, 58, served as national security adviser and ambassador to the United Nations under President Barack Obama, and was reported to have been considered as Biden’s running mate in 2020.
Rice is the only person in U.S. history to serve as both national security adviser and domestic policy adviser.
In a social media post last week, Rice said she was “deeply grateful” to Biden for trusting her to serve as domestic policy adviser and praised the teams at the Domestic Policy Council and White House.
“There are no more dedicated public servants,” Rice said. “I am so proud of all we have been able to accomplish together for the American people.”
