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Raj Shah, the Indian American spokesman under White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, will be taking a temporary hiatus from his job to work full-time for President Trump in nominating the next Supreme Court justice.
As Sarah Huckabee Sanders states, Shah “will oversee communications, strategy and messaging coordination with Capitol Hill allies” — reported by Watertown Daily Times.
The White House announced on Monday that President Trump has appointed Shah to take on this role.
Seeking a replacement for retiring Justice Anthony M. Kennedy as quickly as possible, President Trump hired Shah to aid him in his efforts to confirm a nominee for his seat before October, when the court’s new term will begin. His nominee will be announced on July 9th, according to Trump.
Being a vocal spokesman for the White House, Shah has demonstrated his disapproval for negative political rhetoric.
During the confirmation of Gina Haspel for CIA director, Shah defended former White House staffer Kelly Sadler for calling Senator John McCain irrelevant during a staff meeting because “McCain was dying anyway.”
“In any workplace, if you aren’t able in internal meetings to speak your mind, or convey thoughts or say anything that you feel without feeling like your colleagues will betray you, that creates a very difficult work environment,” Shah told Talking Points Memo.
According to the Hartford Courant. , Shah’s has also worked for the Republican National Committee and the 2010 U.S. Senate campaign for former GOP Congressman Rob Simmons.
When asked about his leave of absence, Shah did not respond to CBS’s repeated requests for comment.
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