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Top Biden strategists to leave White House for Biden campaign

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Top Biden strategists to leave White House for Biden campaign


Two of President Biden’s top advisers, Mike Donilon and Jen O’Malley Dillon, will depart the White House and join his reelection campaign early next month as the president pivots to an all-hands-on-deck mode with former president Donald Trump quickly moving toward the Republican nomination.

O’Malley Dillon, currently Biden’s deputy chief of staff, will be the campaign chair, and Donilon, a senior adviser and longtime Biden aide, will serve as chief strategist. Both have served in the White House from the first day of Biden’s administration.

The moves come after several Democrats, including former president Barack Obama, have encouraged Biden to bolster his campaign apparatus and empower more top-level decision-makers at his campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Del.

Obama urges Trump to bolster his campaign

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O’Malley Dillon ran Biden’s successful general election campaign in 2020 and has been a principal architect of the president’s reelection while juggling other White House duties. Donilon is a longtime adviser who oversaw Biden’s message and strategy in the 2020 campaign and has replicated that role at the White House.

O’Malley Dillon’s move was first reported by the New York Times.

Julie Chavez Rodriguez, currently Biden’s campaign manager, will remain in that role. Donilon is expected to play a central role in the campaign’s messaging and paid media strategy, and O’Malley Dillon in the organizing and execution of the path to 270 electoral votes.

“Mike and Jen were essential members of the senior team that helped President Biden and Vice President Harris earn the most votes in American history in 2020, and we’re thrilled to have their leadership and strategic prowess focused full-time on sending them back to the White House for four more years,” said Chavez Rodriguez.

Julie Chavez Rodriguez, from quiet aide to running Biden’s campaign

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One Biden adviser, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said the move is being made now because the president is essentially heading into the general election. Trump is expected by most operatives in both parties to wrap up the Republican nomination shortly.

“This is a reflection that we are headed into the general” election, the adviser said. “This is a natural time to do this.”

Several people involved in the decision said it was not driven by outside criticism. Donilon, who also works with advertising and polling, has long been expected to leave the White House, while the plans for O’Malley Dillon have been less clear.

Jim Messina, who was a top aide to Obama in the White House and in his 2012 reelection campaign, said the move makes political sense.

“This is a smart move by President Biden and Julie,” Messina said. “Having additional top political aides focus full-time on the reelect is exactly what you’d expect the White House to do as the general election matchup comes into focus.”

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Still, many of the people at the White House who are involved in campaign strategy will remain in Washington, including top Biden advisers Anita Dunn, Steve Ricchetti, Ben LaBolt and Emmy Ruiz.

White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients will remain involved in campaign discussions as well, and so will senior White House advisers Annie Tomasini and Anthony Bernal.

Because so many top strategists have been based at the White House, more than 100 miles from campaign headquarters in Delaware, important decisions about the 2024 reelection effort have often had to be run by the White House first. That has led to concerns that the campaign is moving too slowly.

The transition has been planned for some time, though the timing has been uncertain until now.

In December, Obama met with Biden at the White House, where the two discussed the structure of the campaign. Obama had raised concerns about keeping all of Biden’s closest aides at the White House.

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In contrast, Obama in 2012 dispatched two of his top aides to Chicago to oversee his reelection campaign.



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The American story projected on the Washington Monument came from North Texas

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The American story projected on the Washington Monument came from North Texas


Steve Deitz walks with the energy of a coach; however, he does not hide that he and his team are digital nerds and storytellers who specialize in large-scale visual content and software development. More specifically, the 48-year-old makes a living creating the wow factor at his agency, “900lbs.”

“We started the company working for the Dallas Mavericks, telling large-scale visual content on the Jumbotron, and next thing you know, Activision, Blizzard calls,” he said. “We get to work in the Perot Museum on the biggest  exhibit in the museum, and then fast-forward another 12 years, and here we are now.”

His current project is wrapping up in the nation’s capital — sorta. Since Dec.31, projections of America’s story have been given to his agency.

“We’re telling the story of the 250-year birthday of America in the biggest way possible on the facade of the Washington Monument on all four sides,” Deitz said.

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He said they started testing out the results a couple of nights before New Year’s Eve. Scenes from Thomas Edison’s light bulb, the Empire State Building, the Model T Ford, and the Industrial Revolution, to name a few, are projected onto the Washington Monument.

Deitz gives his team a ton of credit from the moment he received the call about the project. He also thinks back to the times when he was an athlete who loved to draw in Merkel, Texas. The kid who dared to dream beyond the city limits and outside of the box. The CEO is giving advice to that child who may need a little inspiration.

“Hard work, perseverance, dedication, surround yourself with a team of brilliant people that are way smarter than you, and do the best you possibly can,” he said.

Deitz said there is a likelihood his team’s creations will return to the nation’s capital this year.

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Tracking crime in the DMV: Some areas see drop in violent crime, homicide

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Tracking crime in the DMV: Some areas see drop in violent crime, homicide


It is not the way any homicide squad wants to start an already busy new year.

Prince George’s County police Sunday were trying to figure out who was found dead in a car behind a strip center overnight and why. Police, who responded after a call about gun shots, told News4 they’re still searching for the most basic details.

It comes just a day after three people were shot and killed at a Temple Hills banquet hall early Saturday morning. Police told News4 that investigation is active and showing signs of promise.

But the busy start somewhat hides the bigger picture about crime in the area.

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Despite the tough start to 2026, homicide in Prince George’s County was down 40% in 2025 percent compared to 2024, and violent crime on a whole was down 19%, both through mid-December according to Prince George’s County police.

In D.C. is a similar story.

“Now we have no crime in Washington, DC. We have no killing,” said President Donald Trump Saturday during a news conference about action in Venezuela.

While the crime rate is not nearly as good as Trump has repeatedly said, the District recorded five homicides in December and 126 in all of 2025. That’s down 32% over 2024. Violent crime is down 29%, according to D.C .police crime statistics.

In Fairfax, homicide is down 14% — but the county only had 12 total — and violent crime dropped 4%, according to the county’s online reporting.

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Commanders vs. Eagles | How to watch, listen and live stream

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Commanders vs. Eagles | How to watch, listen and live stream


Mariota, who is dealing with a cut on his throwing hand and a quad injury, was considered doubtful to play in Week 18, Quinn said earlier in the week, and has not practiced since sustaining his injuries. Josh Johnson is set to make his second start to close out the Commanders’ season.



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