FILE - In this Monday, Aug. 10, 2009, file photo, Center for American Progress Action Fund President & CEO John Podesta speaks at the National Clean Energy Summit 2.0, at The Cox Pavillion in Las Vegas. Podesta, a former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton and a trusted Democratic operative, will join the White House staff as a senior counselor to President Barack Obama, two persons familiar with the move said late Monday, Dec. 9, 2013. (AP Photo/Eric Jamison, File)