The transition team also made official Saturday the hiring of Ron Klain as chief of staff to the vice president.

Klain was also chief of staff to Vice President Al Gore, but he's no stranger to Vice President-elect Joe Biden, having served as chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee when Biden was the committee chairman.

 Klain also served as general counsel of Gore's 2000 Florida recount effort, and was portrayed by actor Kevin Spacey in an HBO movie about the event.

This year Klain helped with debate preparation for both Obama and Biden.

 "Ron Klain has been a trusted adviser of mine for over 20 years," a statement from Biden said Saturday morning. "He brings extraordinary judgment, a deep understanding of the important policy issues facing our nation, a wide range of experience in the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government, as well as a unique understanding of how the vice president's office works."

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/15/transition.appointments/index.html

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{Why would a Vice President need a "chief of staff"? It's kind of like being the "Maytag Man's" personal assistant. If the boss isn't doing anything what are you supposed to do? Someone once said something to the effect that being Veep isn't worth a bucket of warm spit and though Cheney was undeniably powerful in the Bush administration he was usually hiding out somewhere and nobody seemed to know where he was. Most Veeps were political competitors to the Prez and they usually {from what I have read} can hardly stand being in the same room with each other. Johnson loathed Kennedy, Ike despised Nixon, Reagan had no use for George H Bush etc, etc.

Little is known about how Obama and Biden really get along and who knows if Biden will have access to the President. Without having the Presidents ear the veep really is as useless as tits on a bull. I suspect Joe Biden will be kept on a short leash because of his well known proclivity for shooting his mouth off. If he embarrasses the President publicly more than a few times he will probably become invisible. Joe knows his way around foreign affairs and whoever ends up as Sec of State will have him breathing down their neck and offering unsolicited advice. He may end up as a bull in a China shop. All in all it's a job few would want in spite of the fact you're just a heart beat away from the Presidency. Poor Joe Biden. I have a feeling he's going to curse the day he ever agreed to consider the job.}