Louisa Terrell, a top aide to President Joe Biden and his director of legislative affairs, plans to step down from her position, according to two people familiar with her plans.Terrell, who has been with Biden since the start of his presidency, played a key role during the first two years of his administration in getting his key legislative priorities passed, including the bipartisan infrastructure bill and last year’s Inflation Reduction Act.
As the president gears up for reelection, and the opportunities for pushing additional legislation through the House dwindles after Republicans regained control of the chamber, speculation about Terrell’s departure had grown for months. She stayed in the job well into Biden’s third year largely to deal with the high-stakes negotiations with Republicans over spending and the debt ceiling increase.
A Delaware native, Terrell first met Biden when she was 5 years old. She also attended kindergarten with the president’s son, Beau, who died of a brain tumor in 2015. Terrell started working for Biden when he was a senator as a counsel for the Senate Judiciary Committee. She also served as his deputy chief of staff in his personal Senate office.