Lyons, a lawyer, started his career as a law clerk to Brett Kavanaugh when the Supreme Court justice was still a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals. He later worked on Capitol Hill and for Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential run before joining the White House. Lyons and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.
„Great news that President @realDonaldTrump tapped Derek Lyons — an excellent attorney and rock-solid conservative — to lead his domestic policy team, in addition to his critically important job ensuring all key advisors weigh in before presidential decisions,“ tweeted Mike Davis, a former Republican Senate and White House staffer who aided the confirmations of Kavanaugh and Justice Neil Gorsuch.
But other Republicans complained that Lyons did not have the conservative credentials needed for the job.
„Anyone who previously worked for the Jeb Bush campaign shouldn’t be allowed near the White House, let alone the Domestic Policy Council,“ said a conservative close to the administration. „Another baffling staffing decision we’ll look back on come November, after the American people weigh in on whether or not President Trump did what they elected him to do.“
Trump’s previous domestic policy chiefs, Grogan and Andrew Bremberg, worked for Bush’s brother, President George W. Bush.
The next domestic policy chief — Trump’s third — is expected to play a significant role in the president’s efforts to reopen the country amid the coronavirus pandemic. If Trump wins a second term in November, the DPC head would help shape the policy goals of the first 100 days, a benchmark for a president to showcase his priorities.
During his year-plus as DPC head, Grogan emerged as an influential figure on most key health care policies, including drug pricing and the effort to ban “surprise” medical bills.
A former top official in the Office of Management and Budget, Grogan most recently has been assisting the White House’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. He pushed his office to be included in decisions over issues like testing shortages, occasionally battling with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, whose future in the administration is in doubt.
Source: politico.com
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