Marc Short to return to White House as Pence’s chief of staff

Former White House legislative director Marc Short will be returning to the Trump administration as Mike Pence’s chief of staff, the vice president’s office confirmed to The Hill on Tuesday.

Pence later announced Short’s return in a post on Twitter.

I am pleased to announce that Marc Short will be returning to the White House to serve as my chief of staff. Marc will be joining the Office of the Vice President in March and we look forward to welcoming him to our great @VP Team!

— Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) February 19, 2019

Short, who left the White House in June of 2018, will replace Nick Ayers, who resigned earlier this year.

{mosads}Short previously served as Pence’s chief of staff when the vice president was in the House and worked on his staff during the 2016 campaign.

As White House legislative director, he worked closely with Congress on President Trump’s tax bill in 2017 and the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch.

After leaving the White House, Short joined a consulting firm, was a fellow at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs and appeared on CNN as a contributor.

“Marc helped Miller Center scholars and UVA students better understand the Trump administration from multiple angles, giving us a clear-eyed insider’s view of a White House operation that is often difficult to grasp – including both the administration’s accomplishments and controversies,” the Miller Center said in a statement. “He did so with a spirit of honesty and collegiality that is essential to civil discourse.”

His appointment comes as the Trump campaign announced a round of hires Tuesday to gear up for the 2020 election.

Kayleigh McEnany was hired to be national press secretary after working as the Republican National Committee’s national spokeswoman.

Trump’s campaign announced Tim Murtaugh will become director of communications after serving in the same role at the Department of Agriculture.

Marc Lotter will work as the director of strategic communications, the campaign said, after working in the first year of the Trump administration as special assistant to the president and press secretary for the vice president.

The campaign also tapped Cole Blocker, the deputy director of the White House Visitor’s Office, as its director of finance.

–Updated at 12:49 p.m.