The exit of Desiree Rogers and the subsequent vacancy has been quickly filled by the appointment of Julianna Smoot. Ms. Rogers quit last week stating that it was “a good time for me to explore opportunities in the corporate world”.
It is widely believed that the resignation was forced on Ms. Rogers due to the embarrassing gate crashing incident in November. In that incident, Michaele & Tareq Salahi as well as Carlos Allen attended the event and left the premises without any questioning. They were not on the guest list that evening for the White House state dinner held in honor of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Ms. Rogers was criticized for not having any of her staff present with secret service agents.
Her replacement, Ms. Smoot, is a professional fundraiser and was responsible for President Obama’s efforts to raise funds during his presidential campaign. Ms. Smoot is no newcomer to the scene; in fact she has been employed by no less than five senators previous to her involvement in the Obama campaign. She is regarded as an extraordinary fund raiser who possesses a very powerful contact list. Expectations are that Ms. Smoot will be accepted by the Washington elite more than her predecessor was.
Ms. Rogers did not always conform to the traditional ways in Washington and was often perceived to ruffle some feathers. She always attributed this to the fact that Washington’s elite felt snubbed because the White House cared more for ordinary people. Her unfortunate departure seems to be a direct cause of these sentiments.