Chris Lu

Why He Matters

Lu has been at President  Barack Obama’s side since Obama came to Washington in 2005 as a senator from Illinois. Lu had spent the previous seven years as an attorney for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee before signing on as Obama’s legislative director. During Obama’s presidential campaign, Lu’s top priority was monitoring Obama’s senate votes, but after Obama won the presidential election he named Lu executive director of the transition team.

That led to an appointment as White House cabinet secretary, which acts as a liaison between the White House and the cabinet.

Path to Power

Lu was born in New Jersey and raised in Maryland. His parents came to the United States from Taiwan as graduate students in the 1960s. Lu grew up listening to the news and reading biographies of famous statesmen with his father, an electrical engineer who loved history. Lu became interested in politics, and has said he was grateful that his parents encouraged him to study whatever interested him. His grandfather, Wang Ren-Yuan, was Taiwan’s Attorney General from 1960 to 1966 and was a representative in the Legislative Yuan.Christine Chiu, “Chinese-American Chief of Staff Chris Lu assists Obama; A Harvard Classmate, in decision-making core group,” The World Journal, April 20, 2008

Lu graduated from Princeton’s Wilson School (his time there overlapped with the future Michelle Obama by one year but they did not know each other) and worked on the Daily Princetonian, eventually as the school paper’s news editor. "I learned to write, to think quickly, to meet deadlines, all at the 'Prince,' " he said. “It was really the best education I ever got.” He stayed involved with the paper and he served on the board of trustees until his work in politics became too much of a time commitment.Cornelia Hall, “Obama taps Princeton alum to run transition,” The Daily Princetonian via UWIRE, Nov. 7, 2008

Lu went to Harvard Law from 1988 to 1991, the same years as Barack Obama, but  said he did not know Obama well. Still, he knew the reputation of the person who was to become the first black president of the Harvard Law Review 20 years before becoming the first black president of the United States.  “I have admired his talents for a long time,” Lu said.Christine Chiu, “Chinese-American Chief of Staff Chris Lu assists Obama; A Harvard Classmate, in decision-making core group,” The World Journal, April 20, 2008

After graduating from Harvard Law, Lu clerked for Third Circuit Judge Robert E. Cowen before taking a job in the D.C. office of Sidley Austin, the same firm where Barack and Michelle Obama met in Chicago. Lu also met his future wife at Sidley Austin, but in the D.C. office. He stayed at the firm for four years before deciding to move to Capitol Hill. In 1997, he got a job as deputy chief counsel for the Democratic staff of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and he worked in that office until 2004. Then he joined Sen. John F. Kerry’s (D-Mass.) presidential campaign as a special adviser for communications.Christine Chiu, “Chinese-American Chief of Staff Chris Lu assists Obama; A Harvard Classmate, in decision-making core group,” The World Journal, April 20, 2008

When Kerry lost, Lu went back to the Hill, this time as the legislative director for Barack Obama.“People: Revolving Door,” National Journal’s CongressDaily, March 1, 2005 When Obama’s campaign for president began to gain steam in 2006, Lu stayed in the Senate, making sure everything ran smoothly at Obama’s day job and monitoring all of the senator’s legislative decisions.Cornelia Hall, “Obama taps Princeton alum to run transition,” The Daily Princetonian via UWIRE, Nov. 7, 2008 He did some work for the campaign, serving as campaign director for Delaware during the Democratic primary and staying on as an adviser. But his main focus when Congress was in session was to make sure Obama was prepared for his work in the Senate. When Obama won the presidency, he named Lu executive director of the transition team.Lynn Sweet, “Obama’s next step; What’s in line for Emanuel, Bill Daley, Jarrett?” The Chicago Sun-Times, Oct. 27, 2008

Shortly after the election, Obama chose Lu to serve as cabinet secretary in the White House. Lu will work as the president's liaison to the cabinet and federal agencies."4 join senior Obama team," Orlando Sentinel (Florida), Nov. 20, 2008

The Issues

Lu had his hand in all the important decisions Obama made in his four years in the Senate.  Lu described his job as paying attention to "every bill that [Obama] introduce[d] and every vote that he [cast], every speech he [made], and how he [spent] every minute of every day."Cornelia Hall, “Obama taps Princeton alum to run transition,” The Daily Princetonian via UWIRE, Nov. 7, 2008 He oversaw a staff of 15 that drafted legislation Obama presented and floor speeches the senator gave.

As an attorney for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Lu led investigations into campaign fundraising during the 1996 presidential election and the collapse of Enron.“Spotlight on Christopher Lu,” Obama for America, July 25, 2008 He has also said that affordable education is an issue that is particularly important to him. “A child of immigrants from China, I know the issue on the minds of my parents was how to send their kids to college — and that's why I think it's an important signal that the first piece of legislation that Barack Obama introduced when he came to Washington was to increase the amount of Pell grants to help more kids attend college, and as a member of the U.S. Senate, he worked closely with Sen. [Edward] Kennedy to get that increase signed into law,” he said.Aziz Hanifa, “Time for community to flex political muscle, says Mike Honda,” India Abroad (New York), Oct. 10, 2008

The Network

For seven years, Lu worked for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, where he drafted legislation and conducted investigations for Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) and Democratic chief of staff Phil Schiliro. He also worked on Sen. John F. Kerry’s communications team during Kerry’s 2004 run for president.

(photo courtesy White House / Pete Souza)