Readout of the Principal-Level Transition Exercise

The White House on Friday afternoon convened a transition exercise with members of the President-Elect's team and Cabinet designees together with current senior White House, Cabinet, and agency leaders. The exercise provided a high-level perspective on a series of challenges that the next administration may face and introduced the key authorities, policies, capabilities, and structures that are currently in place to respond to major domestic incidents. Members of President Obama's team shared experiences and lessons from incident responses they experienced, and both sides discussed a number of response scenarios together. Participants agreed that the exercise was productive and advanced the shared goal of conducting the most professional and seamless transition possible.

Obama Administration Participants Included:

Chair
Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism

Denis McDonough, Assistant to the President and White House Chief of Staff
Susan Rice, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
Neil Eggleston, Assistant to the President and White House Counsel
Cecilia Munoz, Assistant to the President and Director of the Domestic Policy Council
Avril Haines, Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor
Dab Kern, Assistant to the President and Director, White House Military Office
Amy Pope, Deputy Homeland Security Advisor and Deputy Assistant to the President
Suzy George, Deputy Assistant to the President and NSC Chief of Staff
John Holdren, Office of Science and Technology Policy Director
Shaun Donovan, Office of Management and Budget Director
Ashton Carter, Secretary of Defense
Gen Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Jeh Johnson, Secretary of Homeland Security
Sally Jewell, Secretary of the Interior
Dr. Ernest Moniz, Secretary of Energy
John King, Secretary of Education
Nicholas Rasmussen, Director of the National Counterterrorism Center
James Comey, Federal Bureau of Investigation Director
John Brennan, Central Intelligence Agency Director
Gayle Smith, U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator
Sylvia Burwell, Health and Human Services Secretary
Dr. Tom Frieden, Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Ely Ratner, Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President
Thomas Shannon, UnderSecretary of State for Political Affairs
Adam Szubin, Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Department of the Treasury
Lt. Gen Todd Semonite, Chief of Engineers and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Sally Yates, Deputy Attorney General
Bruce Andrews, Deputy Secretary of Commerce
Christopher Lu, Deputy Secretary of Labor
Nicole Lurie, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Department of Health and Human Services
Nani Coloretti, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
Victor Mendez, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Transportation
Kevin Hanretta, Assistant Secretary for Operations, Security, and Preparedness, Department of Veterans Affairs
Craig Fugate, Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator
ADM Paul Zukunft, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard
Stanley Meiburg, Acting Deputy Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency
Maria Contreras-Sweet, Small Business Administration Administrator
Gen Lori Robinson, Commander, North American Aerospace Defense Command and United States Northern Command
Gen Joseph Lengyel, Chief of the National Guard Bureau

Incoming Administration Participants Included:

Reince Priebus
Rex Tillerson
Steven Mnuchin
Gen. James Mattis
Rep. Ryan Zinke
Sen. Jeff Sessions
Rep. Mike Pompeo
Wilbur Ross
Betsy DeVos
Sen. Dan Coats
Andrew Puzder
Dr. Tom Price
Dr. Ben Carson
Elaine Chao
Gov. Rick Perry
Dr. David Shulkin
Gen. John Kelly
Rep. Mick Mulvaney
Linda McMahon
Sean Spicer
Joe Hagin
Stephen Miller
Marc Short
Joshua Pitcock
Tom Bossert
KT McFarland
Gen. Michael Flynn
Gary Cohn
Katie Walsh
Rick Dearborn