Trump taps Brooke Rollins as acting domestic policy chief

President Trump on Wednesday officially named longtime White House official and conservative lawyer Brooke Rollins as the acting director of the Domestic Policy Council.

Rollins will oversee Trump’s domestic agenda in the influential role. She previously oversaw the White House Office of American Innovation. Rollins will be Trump’s fourth domestic policy chief since he took office in 2017.

She had taken on the job in recent days, and Trump congratulated her on the new position at an event earlier in the week.

Rollins replaces Joe Grogan, a close ally of former chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, who is officially leaving the White House next week. Grogan has clashed with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar in recent months, according to officials familiar with the matter.

Trump announced at the same time that Derek Lyons will serve as assistant and counselor to the president. Lyons, the White House staff secretary, was reportedly considered for the job as head of the Domestic Policy Council.

The changes come as the White House seeks to manage the response to the coronavirus pandemic while Trump runs for reelection. The president is pushing for states to lift restrictions and allow businesses to reopen in hopes of revitalizing a cratering economy that was once the centerpiece of his argument for another term.

Trump has attempted to make the slogan “Transition to Greatness” stick as he tries to convince the country it is safe to return to business as usual. But the U.S. currently leads the world in reported confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths by a wide margin, and health experts have cautioned that some restrictions will likely be needed until a vaccine is widely available, which could take anywhere from 12 to 18 months.