Son of immigrant parents from Kerala led Biden’s inauguration efforts and helped organize Obama’s 2015 historic trip to India
Maju Varghese, US born son of immigrant parents from Thiruvalla, Kerala, is leaving the White House Military Office (WHMO) after leading it for about a year, citing personal reasons.
Leading WHMO, where he coordinated with military branches supporting presidential operations at the White House and on the road domestically and abroad, was the honor of a lifetime, he said in a series of tweets on Saturday.
Varghese, an Obama administration alum, joined the White House in Match 2021 after leading President Joe Biden’s inauguration efforts and serving as a senior adviser and chief operating officer for Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign.
Read: Maju Varghese: Director of the White House Military Office (July 24, 2021)
“Overcome with lots of emotion today as a 2.5 year journey comes to a close,” he tweeted. “Grateful to have served @POTUS and for the friendships that were forged in the tough days of the early primaries, when we were counted out but bounced back to win it all.”
“Grateful to @BidenInaugural for giving the country a day to celebrate despite all the challenges we faced,” Varghese wrote. “Grateful to the men and women of the White House Military Office for taking me in and teaching me about service and sacrifice.”
Varghese, who previously held multiple posts in the Obama White House, including assistant to the president for management and administration, did not detail his next endeavors, CNN reported. The White House declined to say whether a replacement has been selected.
“One thing I learned during two tours here is it’s a demanding place to work and it’s because the work is really important, and we throw all of ourselves into this,” Varghese told CNN. “Right now, it’s best for me and my family that I kind of just try to strike a little bit more of a balance.”
As head of the military office, Varghese’s job included coordinating Air Force One missions, secure communications via the White House Communications Agency, food services, the medical unit and Camp David, the presidential retreat frequented often by the Biden family.
“These are complex movements, helicopters and planes and ground transportation and communications and supporting large events and global travel in and of itself is hard,” Varghese was quoted as saying. “Now you throw Covid in, you’ve got to think about all that comes with health and safety.”
“The military members also have families at home and kids in school and childcare strains and all those other things just like we all face, and they’re doing this work and they’re serving their country while also dealing with the same things we’re all dealing with because of Covid,” he added.
As Covid-19 took hold in the US in the middle of the 2020 Democratic primary, Varghese worked closely with a team of health advisers, including the Indian American Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, to develop safety protocols for campaigning and working amid a pandemic, CNN said.
“It was a stressful period where people were worried and staff members were concerned about this pandemic that was descending on our country,” Murthy was quoted as saying.
Read: Maju Varghese appointed White House Military Office director (March 2, 2021)
“The way he would run meetings and to both chart out a path forward, reassure people, his calmness in the face of serious adversity and uncertainty — those are invaluable qualities that he brought to the operation.”
As executive director of the presidential inaugural committee, Varghese was also tasked with planning a scaled-back inauguration due to the pandemic and heightened security following the violent US Capitol riots on Jan 6, 2021.
“We relied on that creativity and ingenuity to figure out how to reinvent and recreate some of those inaugural experiences,” Varghese told CNN. “We weren’t able to do the things we would have loved to have done which is celebrate together, but we did give the country something.”
Deputy White House chief of staff Jen O’Malley Dillon called Varghese “one of the most tested, trusted and talented leaders on Team Biden.”
“As the country faced confounding crises one year ago, he led the team that orchestrated a historic, unforgettable inauguration that defined the tone of our first year in office,”she told CNN.
“Maju not only embodies the President’s core values, but instills them in all of us through his service, optimism, and heart.”
Read: Maju Varghese Quits as White House Military Office Head (January 24, 2022)
As then President Barack Obama’s special assistant and the deputy director of advance, he worked on organizing Obama’s travels, including his 2015 historic trip to India as chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations.
Varghese has also worked as the chief operating officer at The Hub Project and as a senior advisor at the law firm Dentons.
He has a bachelor’s degree in political science and economics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.