In the absence of a U.S. Surgeon General, President Obama Friday announced the appointment of Ron Klain to the newly created position of Ebola czar to coordinate the nation's response to the deadly virus.

Klain is a Harvard Law School educated attorney who was Vice President Joe Biden's and Vice President Al Gore's chief of staff. He is considered a savvy political coordinator and effective communicator.

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With three confirmed Ebola cases in the U.S. and fears of more, along with the need for increased testing, many people had called for an overall response coordinator. On Thursday, Obama said he was open to the idea of naming such a coordinator.

That appointment happened less than 24 hours later. Klain will answer directly to Susan Rice, National Security Advisor and Lisa Monaco, Homeland Security Advisor. His mission is to protect Americans from Ebola while coordinating response and public information.

Obama had been under pressure from some quarters to name someone to coordinate the Ebola response. They argued this was needed from a practical standpoint since most U.S. hospitals couldn't cope with the disease and from a public relations standpoint to calm fears.

The president resisted those calls until Friday saying officials already were responding well to the crisis. However, without a Surgeon General -- Obama's nomination of Dr. Vivek Murthy has been held up in Congress for a year -- pressure resulted in the Klain appointment.

Klain has a reputation for being a top manager with good relations within the Obama Administration and with Congress. Although he isn't a health professional, his domestic and foreign policy experience should serve him well in the new role, analysts said.

A former chief of staff to Joe Biden and Al Gore when he was Vice President, Klain currently is President of Case Holdings, an investment group, and general counsel for Revolution LLC founded by AOL chief Steve Case. He was popularly known for his involvement on Gore's side during the 2000 presidential vote recount. Kevin spacey played him in the HBO film "Recount."

TagsObama, ron klain, outbreak, Response, Ebola czar, Joe Biden