Sen. Harry Reid’s chief of staff announces his departure

By Amber Phillips

Thursday, April 9, 2015 | 10:16 a.m.

WASHINGTON — It’s been a big few weeks of change for Sen. Harry Reid.

Less than two weeks after announcing he is retiring from 30 years in the U.S. Senate and endorsing a family friend to run for his seat, Reid also is changing his staff for his final 21 months in office.

On Thursday, the Nevada Democrat’s chief of staff, David Krone, announced he’s stepping down from one of the top positions on Capitol Hill after five years.

Krone came on after Reid’s 2010 re-election, guiding the then-Senate majority leader and current Senate minority leader through fiscal cliff debates, government shut downs and, most recently, a power change to Republicans.

“The time has come for me to formally announce my departure,” Krone said in an email, followed by a press release from Reid.

Krone, a former telecommunications executive, was known for his shrewd and sometimes brash negotiating style. He rarely backed down from a fight, even with President Barack Obama in the hours after Senate Democrats lost their majority in the chamber.

“Thank you for putting up with me these past few years,” Krone said in his email. “I may not have always made it easy but hopefully I am remembered simply for always trying to do my best.”

Krone’s departure was expected: His wife is a former Obama aide who is moving to New York, and Politico reported in January he had plans to leave.

“David is like family,” Reid said in a statement. “We have been through so much together, and through it all I relied on his wise counsel and strategic insight. He inspired tremendous loyalty in our staff who felt, as I do, that whatever challenges arose, David always had your back.”

Krone’s replacement will be former Senate Sergeant at Arms Drew Willison, who previously served in a nonpartisan role as chief security officer for the Senate. Willison and Reid worked on a key energy and water panel in the Senate in the early 2000s.

“Drew has a proven ability to steer large organizations and has built broad relationships on both sides of the aisle that will prove invaluable to me and Senate Democrats in general,” Reid said in a statement. “Drew knows Nevada and knows the Senate and I will rely on his extensive experience and strategic vision in the months to come.”