Eric Schultz

Eric Schultz is a senior advisor to former President Barack Obama and is the founder of Schultz Group. Schultz is a former White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary and special assistant to President Obama. Recognized by Politico as the strategist “White House officials turn to in a crisis to handle communications,” Schultz was originally hired at the White House in 2011 to respond to Congressional oversight investigations. After White House Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest replaced Jay Carney to become White House Press Secretary, Schultz was appointed White House Deputy Press Secretary. In this role, Schultz often diffused "tensions with humor. But he [could] be relentless in pushing his message in both public and private conversations.” Former White House Communications Director Jen Psaki compared Schultz to fictional crisis manager Olivia Pope, "he's the person you want next to you in a foxhole when there's a crisis." At the end of President Obama's second term, former White House Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett said of Schultz, “We’ve all grown to rely on his wise counsel" and that the President "trusts his sound judgement." Schultz got his start in politics as an opposition researcher and tracker on then-First Lady Hillary Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign in New York State. In 2004 he steered communications efforts in New Hampshire for John Kerry — a state that Kerry won in both the primary and general elections. Schultz spent several years on Capitol Hill working for a number of U.S. Senators, including now Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) where he raised the Senator’s national profile while maximizing visibility in each of New York’s media markets. When Schultz left, Senator Schumer said, "Eric did an incredible job.” In 2008, he served as the national press secretary for John Edwards’ Presidential campaign before working as Deputy Campaign Manager for Al Franken during his successful run for the Minnesota Senate in 2008. According to the Washington Post, Schultz brought “order and discipline” to Franken’s campaign, working closely with the consultant team on television spots, direct mail, and an aggressive press strategy that kept a favored incumbent opponent on defense and sank his approval ratings. During a high profile recount, Schultz worked directly with the chief counsel to devise messaging that augmented the campaign’s legal strategy. Immediately before joining the White House, Schultz served as communications director for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in 2010, retaining Senate control for Democrats despite an historic Republican wave. In this role, Schultz became “well-known among Washington reporters for his aggressive, behind-the-scenes approach,” as noted by Politico.