Obama appoints advisor McDonough as chief of staff

United States President Barack Obama appointed Denis R McDonough, one of his top foreign policy advisors and longtime trusted aide as his next Chief of Staff.

Denis R McDonough, who is a foreign policy advisor in the Obama administration and currently serves as Deputy National Security Advisor, would replace Jack Lew, who has been nominated by US President as his next Treasury Secretary.

"I have been counting on Denis for nearly a decade, since I first came to Washington when he helped set up my Senate office," Obama said Friday at the White House as he made a series of other personnel announcements.

"He's been one of my closest and most trusted advisers on my presidential campaign, on my transition team. He has been an indispensable member of my national security team as well.

"Denis has played a key role in every major national security decision in my presidency, ... in the war in Iraq to winding down the war in Afghanistan, from our response to natural disasters around the world like Haiti and the tsunami in Japan, to the repeal of Don't Ask-Don't Tell, to countless crises in between day and night," he said.

"Denis insists on knowing for himself the real-world impact of the decisions that we make, so away from the cameras, without a lot of fanfare, he's visited our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan repeatedly, hearing their concerns, finding out what they need, and then making sure to follow up.

"He travels to Walter Reed again, without fanfare, to spend time with our wounded warriors, getting to know them and what we, as a nation, can do to take care of them and their families," Obama said.