Biden picks Denis McDonough, Obama’s White House chief of staff, as secretary of veterans affairs

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden is naming Susan Rice as director of the White House Domestic Policy Council. The role will give her broad sway over his administration’s approach to immigration, health care and racial inequality and elevates the prominence of the position in the West Wing. He is also nominating former President Barack Obama’s White House chief of staff Denis McDonough as secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The sprawling agency has presented organizational challenges for both parties over the years. In tapping Rice and McDonough for the roles, Biden is continuing to stockpile his administration with prominent alumni of the Obama administration.