President Barack Obama held a meeting Friday afternoon with his national security and public health teams aimed at coordinating the federal government's response to Ebola — and someone was noticeably absent.
According to the list of participants released by the White House, the president's new "Ebola Czar" Ron Klain was not in attendance.
President Barack Obama, left, speaks to the media about the government’s Ebola response, in the Oval Office of the White House Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014, in Washington. Next to the President are Dr. Thomas Frieden, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Susan Rice, National Security Adviser. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Here's the full list of attendees, from the White House:
The Vice PresidentChuck Hagel, Secretary of Defense
Sylvia Burwell, Secretary of Health and Human Services
Jeh Johnson, Secretary of Homeland Security
Denis McDonough, Chief of Staff
Shaun Donovan, Director of the Office of Management and Budget
John Podesta, Counselor to the President
Susan Rice, National Security Advisor
General Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Samantha Power, Permanent U.S. Representative to the United Nations (via secure video conference)
Dr. John Holdren, Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy
Dr. Thomas Frieden, Director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
Rajiv Shah, Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development
Nancy Powell, State Department Ebola Coordinator
Katie Beirne Fallon, Director of the Office of Legislative Affairs
Jennifer Palmieri, Director of Communications
Joshua Earnest, Press Secretary
Suzanne George, Executive Secretary and Chief of Staff of the National Security Council
Brian Egan, National Security Council Legal Advisor
Rand Beers, Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security
Earlier in the day, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Klain was specifically tasked with coordinating "this broad inter-agency response."
Yet, while representatives from most agencies were present in the meeting, Klain was not.
It was not immediately clear why the new "Ebola Czar" was absent and an email from TheBlaze to the White House was not immediately returned Friday night.
The White House said during the meeting the president was updated on the status of tracing individuals who may have come into contact with the Dallas Ebola patients. Plans to provide resources to local officials were also discussed in the meeting.
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