By Julie Mason
Examiner White House Correspondent 2/19/09
The White House stands mute on a possible nominee to head the Health and Human Services Department (don’t even ask about Commerce). They promised to have the quickest transition in history but uh-oh! Many key spots remain vacant, including a director for FEMA.
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, an Obama pal once rumored to be on the veep list, lately emerged as a top contender for Health and Human Services. True or not? The White House so far isn’t saying.
ROBERT GIBBS: I’m not going to get into the back-and-forth of — or
anything involving people that have not or are not announced.
Q: Sticking with that hypothetical, are we any closer to an HHS secretary this week? Any guidance on timing?
ROBERT GIBBS: I don’t have any guidance on timing. Obviously the President and the team continue to — they’re going through qualified candidates, and as soon as we have news on that we will let you know. I don’t have a time line on that at this point.
Q: So we shouldn’t read anything into the Kansas governor cancelling her schedule today?
ROBERT GIBBS: Not that I’m aware of, no.
As the Bush White House often said: When we have something to announce, we’ll announce it. (Photo Credit: AP)
