Walensky’s secret coach

Jun 13, 2022 View in browser   By Alex Thompson, Adam Cancryn and Max Tani Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.  Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Alex | Email Max  ROCHELLE WALENSKY needed some help. In January 2021, the physician and longtime academic was taking over the public health agency responsible for leading the fight against a once-in-a-century pandemic. With high stakes and little experience in the federal government, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began quietly consulting with an executive coach, TIM SULLIVAN , founder of the Boston-area Wellesley Partners. The pair met regularly in one- or two-hour Zoom sessions or in person in Massachusetts for several months through Labor Day, according to Walensky's schedule, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by the conservative group Americans for Public Trust. The first appointment on the calendar was March 30, 2021. "Tim's focus on quickly identifying 'what is holding you back' as an individual is the hallmark of the firm's approach," according to its website. The company also boasts it has worked with "thousands of healthcare professionals to drive greater performance through fully integrated and tailored organizational solutions." In the weeks following sessions with Sullivan, Walensky began a listening tour around the CDC and reshuffling the agency bureaucracy to consolidate her authority, as POLITICO's ERIN BANCO reported last May. The extra coaching is the latest example of Walensky trying to improve her performance as the Biden administration struggled with ever-changing masking guidance, vaccine skepticism, and variants they did not anticipate. Last fall, Walensky also began meeting with Democratic Party media consultant MANDY GRUNWALD to improve her public communication skills. It came as voters began fuming at the administration's handling of the pandemic and as White House officials sometimes felt blindsided by her announcements. JASON McDONALD , a CDC spokesperson, said in a statement that "Dr. Walensky recognizes the contributions of coaching to strong leadership. She has been working with her coach since her arrival in January 2021. It is very common in federal agencies for government executives to have coaches." McDonald didn't answer a question about who paid for the sessions — the CDC or Walensky. The White House declined to comment; Sullivan and Wellesley Partners did not respond to a request for comment. "Given what is going on in the nature of the world which feels like a never-ending pandemic, we feel it's important to highlight what's going on, particularly with a figure at the head of the CDC," said CAITLIN SUTHERLAND, executive director of Americans for Public Trust. "How many outside individuals need to be brought on to help Rochelle? Not to say there's anything wrong with outside consultants but they are supposed to help improve a leader." MARISSA PADILLA, a communications consultant who aided Walensky during the transition, argued that the incoming director was "clear-eyed about the challenges going into CDC," including the need to boost morale. Executive coaching within the federal government has become more common in recent years, although it's often done through a government contractor or employee who knows the agencies. In 2018, the Trump administration urged agencies to use coaching more. "Coaching is one of the most valuable developmental resources we can offer our workforce," the White House's Office of Personnel Management said at the time. TOM FRIEDEN , the CDC director during the Obama administration, told West Wing Playbook he "periodically sought professional input to improve my skills, including executive coaching and media training." He added: "It is standard — and helpful — for people in leadership and/or public-facing roles to work on professional development so that they can best serve in their role." A former senior Biden health official echoed that it's "actually really good for agencies to offer this to people." Still, the official called Walensky's reliance on such a small shop with no clear government ties "a little weird." TEXT US — Are you ROBBIE GOLDSTEIN, senior policy adviser at the CDC? We want to hear from you. And we'll keep you anonymous if you'd like. Or if you think we missed something in today's edition, let us know and we may include it tomorrow. Email us at westwingtips@politico.com or you can text/Signal/Wickr Alex at 8183240098.   DON'T MISS CONGRESS MINUTES: Need to follow the action on Capitol Hill blow-by-blow? Check out Minutes, POLITICO's new platform that delivers the latest exclusives, twists and much more in real time. Get it on your desktop or download the POLITICO mobile app for iOS or Android. CHECK OUT CONGRESS MINUTES HERE.     POTUS PUZZLER This one is from Max: Which eccentric 20th century billionaire unsuccessfully attempted to bribe LYNDON B. JOHNSON into ending nuclear testing in Nevada? The Oval PROBABLY NOT HER LAST VISIT: Vice President KAMALA HARRIS went to South Carolina for a Democratic Party dinner Friday night. The state is critical in the presidential nominating process, so we asked people there how it went, given that Harris may run again in 2028 — or 2024 if Biden decides not to run — and since she struggled to gain traction in the state in 2020 as a candidate before dropping out State party chair TRAV ROBERTSON: "She was absolutely pitch perfect and it was one of the best speeches I ever heard her give. It was significant that she came out to energize the Democrats in South Carolina. She and her staff were wonderful to work with." Longtime State Rep. GILDA COBB-HUNTER: "The energy and excitement from her speech carried over to the next day's convention. I really think the vice president is coming into her own." Here was the AP's write up of the event.  RELATED: Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG, another Democrat who ran in 2020, also went to South Carolina — to Charleston — this spring for the party's finance council meeting, as New York Magazine recently reported. IN BIDEN'S EAR: Our colleagues CHRIS CADELAGO, ADAM CANCRYN, DANIEL LIPPMAN and, in her POLITICO swan song, LAURA BARRÓN-LÓPEZ published a long-read last night on the ascendance of Domestic Policy Council director SUSAN RICE. The piece notes Rice's role in shaping the White House's response to gun violence as well as a host of other issues. "Her fiefdom is as remarkable as how she managed to secure it. Having eschewed a public-facing role, Rice has relied on a combination of internal maneuvering and bureaucratic know-how to place herself at the nerve center of some of the fiercest debates roiling Washington. And she's further cemented her status with the president in the process." Read the whole piece here. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: New rules about furnaces. CNN reported on Monday that the Department of Energy proposed a new rule to make residential natural gas furnaces more energy-efficient, marking the first significant update to furnace standards since the 1990s. Several Biden administration officials on Twitter touted the move, including communications adviser MATT HILL and director of coalitions media JENNIFER MOLINA. Very hot. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ: A new deep dive by the Wall Street Journal into how top Biden administration officials overlearned the lessons from the 2009 recovery and miscalculated the pandemic economy. The piece details Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN's previously unreported back-and-forths with Biden officials, as well as her absence from a meeting when Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus bill was completed. THE BUREAUCRATS REPEAT OFFENDER: Health and Human Services Secretary XAVIER BECERRA tested positive Monday for Covid, his second infection within a month. He was experiencing mild symptoms but planned to continue his duties in isolation, HHS spokeswoman SARAH LOVENHEIM said in a statement. Becerra previously tested positive for Covid on May 18 while in Berlin ahead of the G7 meetings for health ministers. This time around, he got stuck in Sacramento. Agenda Setting MUSEUM MOVES: On Monday, President JOE BIDEN signed a bill to study the creation of a museum dedicated to Asian Pacific American history and culture. While the AAPI community encompasses a broad and diverse number of people, the Biden administration has recently endeavored to speak more directly to Asians in the country. BTS, the Korean pop group, stopped by the White House recently to raise awareness about violence against Asians. And Vice President KAMALA HARRIS , the highest-ranking Asian American in U.S. government history, has held numerous public speaking events aimed at discussing treatment and history of AAPI people in America. What We're Reading Paris Hilton Skipped DJing for President Biden to Attend Britney Spears' Wedding (Billboard's Rania Aniftos) Inside Biden's frustration with soaring prices (Washington Post's Tyler Pager) Meet Aviva Aron-Dine, the White House's newest econ wonk (Jewish Insider's Jacob Miller) Where's Joe Biden returned from his weekend trip to Wilmington, Del., and promptly received the president's daily brief. He later participated in a bill signing for the potential creation of the AAPI museum. Where's Kamala She joined the president at the White House for the bill signing for the study to create a national AAPI museum. POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER Reclusive billionaire HOWARD HUGHES was obsessively terrified of nuclear testing in Las Vegas, where he lived later in life. According to the book, ''Citizen Hughes'' by MICHAEL DROSNIN, the aviator and Hollywood producer ordered an associate to attempt to bribe LBJ in 1968 to halt underground nuclear testing in Nevada, but the bribes were never initiated. A CALL OUT — Do you think you have a more difficult trivia question? Send us your best question on the presidents with a citation and we may feature it. Edited by Eun Kyung Kim.   INTRODUCING DIGITAL FUTURE DAILY - OUR TECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER, RE-IMAGINED:  Technology is always evolving, and our new tech-obsessed newsletter is too! Digital Future Daily unlocks the most important stories determining the future of technology, from Washington to Silicon Valley and innovation power centers around the world. Readers get an in-depth look at how the next wave of tech will reshape civic and political life, including activism, fundraising, lobbying and legislating. Go inside the minds of the biggest tech players, policymakers and regulators to learn how their decisions affect our lives. Don't miss out, subscribe today.       Follow us on Twitter Alex Thompson @AlexThomp Maxwell Tani @maxwelltani Allie Bice @alliebice   Follow us

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