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Press Secretary Powell probably will be moved out of his present job, where he has been increasingly engaging in bad-tempered exchanges with reporters, and given broader duties supervising White House business. Says one senior aide: "We need someone to kick ass here."
That should be Hamilton Jordan's job, but he has neglected it, and domestic political tasks generally, to immerse himself in foreign policy. He has angered congressional leaders, whom he is supposed to keep in touch with and does not. Some advisers would like to see Jordan moved out of the White House entirely and assigned to run Carter's re-election campaign. Jordan has been resisting that, and the President is said to have decided on a completely different approach—naming Jordan, in effect, chief of staff. In that post, he will have to develop a greater talent for organization than any he has shown so far. Says one key Democrat of the impending staff shifts: "The very people who are the problem are going to be left in place."
Among Cabinet members, Secretary of Energy James Schlesinger came under the heaviest fire at Camp David. He has annoyed both the public and his Administration colleagues because of his abrasive manner, and most of Carter's aides would like the boss to fire him. Carter has been reluctant to do so, partly out of genuine loyalty, and to a lesser extent out of worry that Schlesinger, a Republican former Secretary of Defense and CIA director, might stump the country in opposition to the SALT II treaty. In frustration, the advisers settled some time ago on getting rid of Schlesinger's No. 2 man, John O'Leary, who submitted his resignation last week.
O'Leary scarcely makes a satisfactory scapegoat, so Schlesinger is still expected to depart soon, though just when is uncertain. White House aides are discussing assignments that could keep him in harness—ambassador to NATO, perhaps —and floating names of possible successors as Secretary of Energy. Among them:
John D. deButts, former chairman of AT&T; Dixy Lee Ray, Governor of Washington and former chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission; Michael Dukakis, former Governor of Massachusetts; John Sawhill, president of New York University and onetime energy czar under Presidents Nixon and Ford; David Freeman, head of the TVA. Getting anyone of substance to take the job may be difficult. It is a thankless task at best, and its authority would be reduced by the creation of any form of Energy Mobilization Board.
Other members of the Cabinet were raked over the coals too. Treasury Secretary Michael Blumenthal was denigrated once again, and several visitors added a new target: HEW Secretary Joseph Califano. The guests told Carter that Califano seemed to be working for himself, was not enough of a team player and needed to be reined in. The President made no attempt to choke off the criticisms.