Pete Rouse

Peter M. Rouse (born 1946) is Senior Adviser to U.S. President Barack Obama, having served as a co-chairman of the Obama-Biden Transition Project. Rouse had been chief of staff to South Dakota Senator Tom Daschle, the former majority leader, and was planning to retire after Daschle lost in 2004. However, still in 2004, Rouse was contacted by a law school friend of Obama's and chose to work for Obama as his Senate chief of staff. Overall, Rouse ha... more

Peter M. Rouse (born 1946) is Senior Adviser to U.S. President Barack Obama, having served as a co-chairman of the Obama-Biden Transition Project. Rouse had been chief of staff to South Dakota Senator Tom Daschle, the former majority leader, and was planning to retire after Daschle lost in 2004. However, still in 2004, Rouse was contacted by a law school friend of Obama's and chose to work for Obama as his Senate chief of staff. Overall, Rouse has worked on Capitol Hill for more than 30 years, since 1971. According to Amy Sullivan (Washington Monthly), Rouse came to be known as "the 101st Senator" thanks to his knowledge and skills. He is a 1968 graduate of Colby College, a graduate of the London School of Economics, and is a 1977 graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School, where he received a Master of Public Administration. Rouse helped prepare a memo, "The Strategic Plan," for Obama's first year in the Senate. Helping Obama navigate Senate politics and yet remain an outsider, Rouse... less