Mick Mulvaney

John Michael “Mick” Mulvaney (born July 21, 1967) is an American politician who served as director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from February 2017 until March 2020, and as acting White House chief of staff from January 2019 until March 2020.^[2][3][4] Prior to his appointments to the Trump administration, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Mulvaney, a Republican, served in the South Carolina General Assembly from 2007 to 2011, first in the House of Representatives and then the Senate.^[5] He served as a U.S. representative for South Carolina's fifth congressional district from 2011 to 2017.^[6] He was nominated as OMB director by President-elect Donald Trump in December 2016^[7] and confirmed by Senate vote (51–49) on February 16, 2017.^[8] While confirmed as OMB director, he served as acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from November 2017 to December 2018, and as acting White House chief of staff from January 2019 until March 2020. After resigning as OMB director and acting White House chief of staff, he served as the U.S. special envoy for Northern Ireland from March 2020 until January 2021.

Mulvaney was known for his support for fiscal conservatism as a congressman, which included a willingness to shut down the government during Barack Obama's presidency. However, as OMB director in the Trump administration, he oversaw an expansion in the deficit. The deficit increases were a result of both spending increases and tax cuts, and were unusually high for a period of economic expansion.^[9] A staunch opponent of the CFPB while in Congress, Mulvaney's tenure as acting director of the bureau led to a considerable reduction of the bureau's enforcement and regulatory powers.^[10][11]

In January 2019, Mulvaney became acting White House chief of staff. In a White House press conference held on October 17, 2019, Mulvaney said the White House had withheld military aid in part until Ukraine investigated an unsubstantiated theory that Ukraine, not Russia, was responsible for hacking Democratic Party emails in 2016.^[12][13] Mark Meadows succeeded Mulvaney as chief of staff.^[14]

On January 7, 2021, Mulvaney reported that he resigned the day before as Special Envoy for Northern Ireland following the storming of the U.S. Capitol.^[15] In 2022, Mulvaney was hired as an on-air contributor for CBS News.^[16] His hiring stirred controversy within the company due to his history of promoting Trump's false claims and attacking the press.^[17] He has since joined NewsNation and CNBC as a contributor.^[18][19]

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