Saturday, December 13, 2008

United States president-elect Barack Obama has announced Shaun Donovan as his choice for the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Donovan is currently New York City‘s housing commissioner.

The announcement was made in Obama’s weekly address, in which the president-elect discussed his reasons for selecting Donovan, and discussed the importance of what he announced will be his department.

“To stem the rising tide of foreclosures and strengthen our economy, I’ve asked my economic team to develop a bold plan that will dramatically increase the number of families who can stay in their homes,” stated Obama in his address, adding “few will be more essential to this effort than the Department of Housing and Urban Development.”

“From providing shelter to those displaced by Katrina to giving help to those facing the loss of a home to revitalizing our cities and communities, HUD’s role has never been more important,” continued Obama. “Since its founding, HUD has been dedicated to tearing down barriers in access to affordable housing — in an effort to make America more equal and more just. Too often, these efforts have had mixed results.”

Following the above comments, Obama described why he selected Donovan. “That is why we cannot keep doing things the old Washington way. We cannot keep throwing money at the problem, hoping for a different result. We need to approach the old challenge of affordable housing with new energy, new ideas, and a new, efficient style of leadership. We need to understand that the old ways of looking at our cities just won’t do… No one knows this better than the outstanding public servant I am announcing today as our next Secretary of Housing and Urban Development — Shaun Donovan.”

“As Commissioner of Housing Preservation and Development in New York City, Shaun has led the effort to create the largest housing plan in the nation, helping hundreds of thousands of our citizens buy or rent their homes,” continued Obama. “Prior to joining Mayor Bloomberg’s administration, Shaun worked both in business, where he was responsible for affordable housing investments, and at one of our nation’s top universities, where he researched and wrote about housing issues. “

Donovan previously worked as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing at HUD, and was acting FHA commissioner under the Clinton administration.