Mike Donilon

Mike Donilon (born c. 1959) is an American attorney and campaign consultant who serves as a Senior Advisor to U.S. President Joe Biden. He was the chief strategist of Joe Biden's 2020 presidential campaign.[2] Prior, Donilon was working as a partner at AKPD Message and Media. Between 2009 and 2013,[3] he served as Counselor to Vice President Biden in the Obama administration. Prior to his White House appointment, Donilon worked with the vice-presidential candidate to help him prepare for the debates and also as a traveling advisor. He has been an advisor and consultant to President Biden since 1981.[4]

Mike Donilon
Donilon in 2013
Senior Advisor to the President
Assumed office
January 20, 2021
Serving with Cedric Richmond and Anita Dunn
PresidentJoe Biden
Preceded byJared Kushner
Stephen Miller
Ivanka Trump
Personal details
Born1958 or 1959 (age 61–62)[1]
Political partyDemocratic
RelativesTom Donilon (brother)
Cathy Russell (sister-in law)
EducationGeorgetown University (BA, JD)

Early life and education

He is the son of Theresa A. Donilon (née Conway), who worked two jobs, as a school secretary and a message service operator while also leading a school secretary and janitors' union; and Edward T. Donilon, who was a product control manager and a local school board chairman.[5] His father was of Irish descent, and his maternal grandparents had immigrated from Ireland.[6] Donilon is a graduate of La Salle Academy in Providence, Rhode Island.[7] He earned a Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor from Georgetown University.

Career

Mike Donilon has advised candidates and worked on their campaigns in numerous important races including Douglas Wilder's historic campaign and election as Governor of Virginia (1989), Harris Wofford's upset victory over Dick Thornburgh to become Senator for the state of Pennsylvania, and Bill Clinton's successful run for the White House in 1992.

Donilon has also worked on campaigns for Governor Jon Corzine (D-NJ), Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT), Representative Dick Gephardt (D-MO), Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Senator John Edwards (D-NC), Vice President Al Gore (D-D.C), Senator John Kerry (D-MA), and former Senator Mark Dayton (D-MN).[8] In 2006 and 2008, Donilon claims he was "instrumental in the campaigns for Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Senator Mark Udall (D-CO), and Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), working to create the campaign ads for those races paid for by independent expenditure of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee."

Biden administration

As his longtime advisor, Mike Donilon held significant influence over Joe Biden's successful 2020 campaign for president.[9] He helped develop Biden's campaign strategy that had a three-pronged message: "that the election was about the 'soul of the nation'; that the threatened middle class was the 'backbone of the nation'; and that what was most needed was to 'unify the nation.' Only Biden could restore the nation's soul, repair its backbone, and unify it.”[9] "This is really about character and values as opposed to issues and ideology," said Mike Donilon, Biden's chief strategist, when speaking to the New York Times.[10]

In November 2020, Donilon was named Senior Advisor to the President.[11][12]

Personal life

Donilon's brothers are BlackRock Investment Institute chair Tom Donilon, who was chief of staff in former President Bill Clinton’s State Department and is a former National security adviser to Barack Obama,[13][14][15] and Terry Donilon, Communications Director for Cardinal Seán Patrick O'Malley of the Archdiocese of Boston.[16] His sister-in-law is Catherine M. Russell.

References
  2. "Mike Donilon, Who Helped Draft Biden's Message, Is Named a Senior Advisor".
  3. "Biden Senior Adviser, Mike Donilon Joins AKPD As Partner". Archived from the original on March 13, 2014. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  4. "Vice President-elect Biden announces key staff positions for the Vice President's office". Archived from the original on November 26, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2008.
  5. "Theresa Ann Conway Donilon (1926-1998) - Find A..." www.findagrave.com. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  6. "Tom Donilon ancestry". Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
  7. "Washington Post Does Lengthy Profile on La Salle Alum Tom Donilon '73". LaSalle Academy. December 22, 2010. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
  8. Jamieson, Kathleen Hall (September 29, 2011). Electing the President, 2004: The Insiders' View. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0-8122-0481-0.
  9. Lizza, Ryan (December 12, 2019). "Why Biden's Retro Inner Circle Is Succeeding So Far". Politico. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  10. Steinberger, Michael (July 23, 2019). "Joe Biden Wants to Take America Back to a Time Before Trump". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  11. Nichols, Hans (November 17, 2020). "Biden to bring Donilon and Ricchetti into White House". Axios. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  12. "Biden announces slate of White House senior staffers". ABC News. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  13. "Thomas Donilon". BlackRock. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  14. Profiles. "Catherine Russell: Why She Matters" Archived February 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, "whorunsgov.com".
  15. Vogel, Kenneth P."15 Obama administration power couples", "Politico", June 15, 2009.
  16. "The brothers Donilon: One's boss is President Obama, the other's could be pope". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
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