GOP: Ebola "czar" Ron Klain steeped in politics, not medicine

This undated handout photo provided by Revolution shows Ron Klain, a former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden. A longtime Democratic operative, Klain was tasked Friday by President Barack Obama with running the government's response to the Ebola crisis. (AP Photo/Revolution) AP

After critics accused the federal government of mishandling the first cases of Ebola diagnosed stateside, President Obama named Ron Klain, a former aide to Vice President Biden, as the government's Ebola response coordinator on Friday.

In his new role, Klain will oversee the multitude of departments and agencies involved in the government's response to the virus.

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Gerald Seib, Susan Glasser, and Jeffrey Kluger discuss whether the government, from President Obama on down, is ably handling the response to Ebo...

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Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee, explains her problems with President Obama's selection of former Biden aide Ron Klain as the government's Ebo...

On Sunday, though, the administration's critics continued firing away, saying that Klain, whose background is in politics rather than emergency response or health care, might not be the best fit for the position he now holds.

"Mr. Klain is not a doctor. He's not a health care professional. He doesn't have background in these issues. But what he is, is a political operative," Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told CNN. "We don't need another White House political operative...What we need is presidential leadership. The person who needs to be on top of this is the president of the United States, standing up and leading and treating it as a public health emergency."

Cruz said the government should be less concerned about convincing the public they have Ebola under control, and more concerned about actually keeping the virus under control.

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GOP: Ebola "czar" Ron Klain steeped in politics, not medicine

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