In his first public White House personnel choice, President-elect Joe Biden has named his longtime aide and a veteran Democratic operative Ron Klain as his Chief of Staff, AFP reported. 

Klain, who is critical of President Donald Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, has earlier advised former president Barack Obama and, according to NYT, he served as the “Ebola czar” under the second term of Obama, when a deadly disease broke out. 

“Ron has been invaluable to me over the many years that we have worked together,” Biden said in a statement. Klain, 59, has served as chief of staff for the 77-year-old when he was vice president.

“His deep, varied experience and capacity to work with people all across the political spectrum is precisely what I need in a White House chief of staff as we confront this moment of crisis and bring our country together again,” Biden said.

Reacting to the news, Klain thanked everyone on Twitter and said, “I’m honored by the President-elect’s confidence and will give my all to lead a talented and diverse team in a Biden-Harris WH.”

According to NYT, the President-elect has called Klain an “invaluable” adviser, noting their work together during the 2009 recession and 2014 Ebola outbreak.