The White House confirmed Friday night that Mick Mulvaney will stay on as the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) even after he takes over as President Trump’s acting chief of staff.
“Mick Mulvaney will not resign from the Office Of Management and Budget, but will spend all of his time devoted to his role as the acting Chief Of Staff for the President. Russ Vought will handle day to day operations and run OMB,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement.
{mosads}Trump tapped Mulvaney earlier Friday to replace John Kelly as chief of staff after the retired Marine Corps general leaves the White House at the end of the month.
The announcement capped off a roller coaster week of searching for a replacement after no front-runner emerged among the available candidates.
Mulvaney called the appointment a “tremendous honor.”
While declaring Mulvaney the acting chief of staff, it is unclear if the president will continue his search or simply leave Mulvaney in the role on a permanent basis.
“There’s no time limit. He’s the acting chief of staff, which means he’s the chief of staff. He got picked because the president liked him, they get along,” a senior administration official told reporters.
Asked why Mulvaney was named acting chief of staff instead of simply chief of staff, the official responded “because that’s what the president wants.”
This is the second role Mulvaney will take on in an acting capacity while leading the White House budget office. He had led the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau since November 2017 after its previous director, Obama holdover Richard Cordray, left the post. The new permanent director was sworn in this week.