White House Energy 'Czar' to Exit in Staff Shake-Up

[Casino67]

WSJ.com:

Carol Browner is leaving her position as White House "energy czar," and a staff shake-up is likely to eliminate her post altogether, according to Democrats familiar with events.

The "czar" position, and Ms. Browner herself, have been lightning rods for critics of the president's environmental-policy agenda and a reassurance to its supporters, who liked having a top official in the White House devoted to their priorities.
[obastaff0124] Bloomberg News

Carol Browner, director of the U.S. Office of Energy and Climate Policy, in Washington on Feb. 3, 2010.

As part of the shifting landscape, the office of the White House "health czar'' may also be eliminated, said people familiar with the process.

Ms. Browner led the administration's effort to gather votes in Congress for legislation to limit emissions of greenhouse gases. The effort unraveled in the Senate last year, amid opposition from Republicans and some Democrats fearful of its impact on energy prices and jobs.

Ms. Browner was also a heroine to many environmentalists who cheered her decisions when she led the EPA in the 1990s and viewed her as an ally in internal administration debates over environmental regulation. Her influence within the administration has long been a source of concern to Republicans critical of her record in the Clinton administration. Fred Upton, the new chairman of the House Energy and Commerce (R., Mich.), had suggested in recent weeks that he intended to investigate Ms. Browner's authority.


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I think this is an indication that the O doesn't expect to get much through the next two years.