The White House on Tuesday insisted that Ebola czar Ron Klain has performed “very well,” even as confusion mounts about states adopting standards to contain the deadly disease that conflict with federal guidelines.
Klain, the former chief of staff to Vice Presidents Joe Biden and Al Gore, was heralded by the White House as a management guru capable of navigating the tricky government bureaucracy to limit the spread of Ebola.
Critics say Klain has not articulated a clear set of principles for how the government should ensure Americans aren’t exposed to Ebola, with some suggesting the Democratic insider has been “invisible” since starting the job seven days ago.
“He has performed very well in that task,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said of Klain, adding that his work was “already being felt at the White House and across the government.”
Most of Klain’s work, Earnest said, has taken place behind the scenes.
Govs. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., and Chris Christie, R-N.J., implemented 21-day quarantines on those returning to their states from Ebola-stricken nations in West Africa. The Army issued a similar order to soldiers coming back from West Africa, another departure from White House policy.
Christie on Tuesday even suggested that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was afraid to admit it was “behind” New Jersey in responding to the Ebola threat.
The White House sidestepped questions about the contradictions in Ebola policy, instead framing the U.S. response in most places as consistent with the actions preferred by President Obama.
Earnest said there was an “emerging consensus from other states that can be best implemented to protect” their residents, which reflected the best analysis of the medical community.
