Shake-up planned for Obama's Cabinet; Sandy czar likely to get promotion

WASHINGTON Shuffling his second-term Cabinet, President Obama plans to nominate Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan his point man in overseeing the governments response to Superstorm Sandy to be budget director, according to people familiar with the selection process.

Obama is considering San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro to succeed Donovan, the sources said. The moves would raise the profile of two men with close ties to the president.

Donovan is an original member of Obamas Cabinet and is well-liked within the White House, where officials have lauded his work in overseeing the Sandy response. As budget director, he would have significant influence over the administrations policy and spending priorities.

The White House said Saturday that it had no personnel announcements to make, but on Thursday, Obama had words of praise for Donovan.

In the aftermath of Sandy, when we thought about who was somebody who we had confidence could drive a process to make sure that the federal, state and local coordination delivered for the people who had been affected, and that we could rebuild both on the New York side and the Jersey side as effectively as possible and as quickly as possible, Shaun came to mind, Obama said during a fundraiser in New York that Donovan also attended.

Donovan would be leaving his job at Housing and Urban Development at a time when New Jersey residents affected by Sandy have been complaining of delays in getting federal aid. This month, members of the states congressional delegation raised those concerns in a meeting with Donovan. They said Donovan made a bedrock commitment that New Jersey will get the money it deserves, saying the third wave of funds from Washington could begin moving in the next several weeks.

Donovan also said this month that he would not rule out the possibility that other disaster-stricken states could get as much as $1 billion of the $52 billion approved primarily for Sandy recovery last year. New Jersey House members, who battled to get the aid package through a House Republican majority that initially blocked it, said they also expressed strong opposition to that possibility.

The director of the Office of Management and Budget is a Cabinet-level post under Obama. Those who have held the job earlier in the administration, including current Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, have played crucial roles in setting budget priorities and negotiating fiscal agreements with Congress.

If confirmed by the Senate, Donovan would take over from Sylvia Mathews Burwell, who was nominated to lead the Department of Health and Human Services after Kathleen Sebelius resigned this year.

Castro, Donovans possible replacement, has seen his star rise since Obama picked him to deliver the keynote address at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Castro, 39, is considered a possible vice presidential pick in 2016.

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Shake-up planned for Obama's Cabinet; Sandy czar likely to get promotion