White House Advisers and the influence They had on Each Other
The President’s Chief of Staff is the highest-ranking appointee of the United States of America’s Executive Office in the White House. As a presidential appointee, the White House Chief of Staff directly reports to the president. Although the president appoints his Chief of Staff, there is no legal requirement to do so. Depending on who the president is, the Chief of Staff’s managerial and advisory roles considerably vary. Typically, the Chief of Staff advises the president on various issues, oversees the schedule of the president, decides who meets the president, supervises the White House staff, negotiates with Congress and intergovernmental bodies, among others. For example, in the 1930s, as a response to the Great Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt relied on his top advisers. During Roosevelt’s second term in office, Congress approved the creation of the Executive Office of the President, thus, the foundation of the modern formal structure of the White House staff, Assistant to the President (predecessor of the White House Chief of Staff), Chief of Staff deputies, White House Counsel, Press Secretary, among others.
Prior to Richard Nixon’s presidency, former presidents (e.g., John F. Kennedy) relied on their Appointments Secretaries in managing their schedules. For two years, President John Kennedy’s Chief of Staff was Kenneth O’Donnell. O’Donnell advised the president during the planning of an invasion for the Cuban Bay of Pigs and Missile Crisis. In addition, O’Donnell was an early critic of the US-Vietnam War; he advised President Kennedy to end the said war. When President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas in 1963, he kept blaming himself. Five years later, President Kennedy’s brother Robert was also assassinated. O’Donnell’s achievements waned farther. Following the death of his best friends (the Kennedy’s) and electoral disappointments as Governor of Massachusetts, he became addicted to alcohol. Just months after the death of his wife, O’Donnell also died of alcoholism in 1977.
During President Richard Nixon’s incumbency, his Chiefs of Staff were Harry Robbins Haldeman (1969-73) and Alexander Haig (1973-74), respectively. The former Chief advised the president to end the war with Vietnam, which materialized. It was during Nixon’s term in office as US President that America was the strongest and most industrialized nation. There were millions of manufacturing jobs, not to mention trade surpluses. However, because of the Nixon’s controversy (Watergate scandal), Haldeman resigned and was replaced by Alexander Haig (1973-74). As the newly appointed Chief of Staff, Haig was largely credited for his duty in keeping the government running during the Watergate. He was instrumental in persuading President Nixon to resign. During Nixon’s last few months as president, Haig seemed by many as the “acting president.” Lastly, Haig was considered as the point man in the background negotiations between Nixon and Vice President Gerald Ford’s ascent to presidency. Because of the Watergate Affairs, when Jimmy Carter was elected president, for the initial two-and-a-half years of his tenure in office, he decided not to appoint his Chief of Staff. From past and present Chiefs of Staff, many are former politicians and continue to do so after their appointment.
As can be gleaned above, the White House Chief of Staff, although a presidential appointee, is a very powerful and influential adviser of the president. Aside from his administrative, managerial and advisory, he also influence the decisions of the president in matters related to economics, foreign affairs, domestic policy, and national security. The Chief of Staff is also often seen as more powerful than most of the president’s Cabinet equivalents. In addition to being a White House Chief of Staff, he can also be appointed in other key governmental positions, such as in the case of Steelman – and who had the longest title for serving Truman during his six years tenure as president. Despite being the highest-ranking employee in the Executive Office of the President, the Chief of Staff’s appointment ends when the president’s tenure ends. Just as in the case of O’Donnell, he served only for two years when President Kennedy died. On the other hand, Haldeman resigned when Nixon appointed Haig in his stead. It was during the turbulent years of Nixon’s presidency that Haig was appointed. Haig “acted as president’ because of Nixon’s preoccupation on the Watergate scandal, was also considered the key adviser in persuading Nixon to resign. (Nixon was later pardoned even before his successor, Vice President Gerald Ford, sworn to office).
References
Digital History. (2013). Nixon Resigns. Retrieved from Using New Technologies to Enhance Teaching and Learning: http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=3&psid=1123
Haldeman, H. (1994). The Haldeman Diaries: Inside the Nixon White House. New York: Putnam.
John F. Kennedy: Presidential Library and Museum. (n.d.). Biographical Profiles: Kenneth P. O'Donnell. Retrieved from John F. Kennedy: Presidential Library and Museum: http://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Research-Aids/Ready-Reference/Biographies-and-Profiles/Kenneth-P-ODonnell.aspx
Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. (1997-2009). Alexander Haig. Retrieved from Microsoft Corporation: http://www.webcitation.org/5kwDfej0s
Truman Library Organization. (n.d.). John R. Steelman Papers. Retrieved from Harry S. Truman: Library & Museum: http://www.trumanlibrary.org/hstpaper/steelman.htm
