John Podesta

John David Podesta Jr. (born January 8, 1949) is an American political consultant. He was White House Chief of Staff to President Bill Clinton from October 20, 1998, until January 20, 2001, and as Counselor to President Barack Obama from January 1, 2014, until February 13, 2015. He is the former president, and now Chair and Counselor, of the Center for American Progress (CAP), a think tank in Washington, D.C. He is a Visiting Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law Center.

John Podesta
Podesta in 2024
Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy
In office March 6, 2024 – January 20, 2025 Serving with Steve Benjamin, Tom Perez, Annie Tomasini, Karine Jean-Pierre and Ben LaBolt
President	Joe Biden
Preceded by	John Kerry (U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate)
Senior Advisor to the President for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation
In office September 2, 2022 – January 20, 2025 Serving with Steve Benjamin, Tom Perez, Annie Tomasini, Karine Jean-Pierre and Ben LaBolt and Mike Donilon, Anita Dunn, Gene Sperling, Mitch Landrieu, Neera Tanden, Julie Rodriguez & Keisha Lance Bottoms
President	Joe Biden
Deputy	Kristina Costa
Preceded by	Office established
Counselor to the President
In office January 1, 2014 – February 13, 2015
President	Barack Obama
Preceded by	Pete Rouse
Succeeded by	Kellyanne Conway
20th White House Chief of Staff
In office October 20, 1998 – January 20, 2001
President	Bill Clinton
Deputy	Steve Ricchetti Maria Echaveste
Preceded by	Erskine Bowles
Succeeded by	Andy Card
White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations
In office January 20, 1997 – October 20, 1998
President	Bill Clinton
Chief of Staff	Erskine Bowles
Preceded by	Evelyn Lieberman
Succeeded by	Steve Ricchetti
White House Staff Secretary
In office January 20, 1993 – June 30, 1995
President	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	Phillip Brady
Succeeded by	Todd Stern
Personal details
Born	John David Podesta Jr. (1949-01-08) January 8, 1949 (age 76) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Mary Podesta ​ (m. 1978)​
Children	3
Relatives	Tony Podesta (brother)
Education	Knox College (BA) Georgetown University (JD)

Podesta was chairman of Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.^[1][2][3] On September 2, 2022, President Joe Biden appointed Podesta as senior advisor to the president for clean energy innovation and implementation.^[4][5] On January 31, 2024, it was announced that Podesta would replace John Kerry as top U.S. climate diplomat.^[6]