WASHINGTON — White House counsel Bob Bauer is leaving his role as the top legal adviser to President Barack Obama and will be replaced by Kathryn Ruemmler, The White House announced Thursday.
Bauer, who has served as White House counsel since January 2010, will return to private practice at the Perkins Cole law firm and serve as an adviser to Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign.
“Bob is a good friend and has served as a trusted advisor for many years,” Obama said in a statement. “Bob was a critical member of the White House team. He has exceptional judgment, wisdom, and intellect, and he will continue to be one of my close advisors.”
Bauer is married to former White House Communications Director Anita Dunn.
Ruemmler, Bauer’s current deputy, will become the president’s third White House counsel following Bauer and his predecessor, Gregory Craig.
In the statement, Obama called Ruemmler “an outstanding lawyer with impeccable judgment,” adding, “Together, Bob and Kathy have led the White House Counsel’s office, and Kathy will assure that it continues to successfully manage its wide variety of responsibilities.”
Ruemmler served as Associate Counsel to President Bill Clinton from 2000-2001 before working for six years as a federal prosecutor investigating the Enron case. Ruemmler joined the Obama Administration in January of 2009 as the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice.
According to the White House official website, the job of White House counsel entails advising “the President, the Office of the President, and the White House staff on all legal issues pertaining to the President and the White House,” advising on “investigations, litigation, legislative and administrative proposals, policy initiatives, and judicial nominations.”
The position was first created in 1943.