Washington ( CNN ) -- President Barack Obama will appoint Ron Klain his `` Ebola czar , '' knowledgeable sources tell CNN . The president on Thursday signaled his openness to the idea to have one individual coordinating the entire federal response to any threat of an outbreak in the United States . `` It may make sense for us to have one person ... so that after this initial surge of activity , we can have a more regular process just to make sure that we 're crossing all the T 's and dotting all the I 's going forward , '' Obama said . White House press secretary Josh Earnest got a little more specific with reporters after the announcement was made Friday . `` I think what you can assume Mr. Klain 's role will be is an important , high-level implementation role , '' said Earnest . `` Ultimately , it will be his responsibility to make sure that all the government agencies who are responsible for aspects of this response , that their efforts are carefully integrated . He will also be playing a role in making sure the decisions get made . '' GOP slams Klain as Ebola czar . The administration has been criticized for its response to the incidents of Ebola in the United States , in terms of how prepared hospitals have been for potential Ebola patients and also how prepared health care workers were in terms of their personal protective gear . Some lawmakers have called for a travel ban on individuals coming from West Africa , where the outbreak is most serious but the administration has so far not embraced that idea . Klain is highly regarded at the White House as a good manager with excellent relationships both in the administration and on Capitol Hill . His supervision of the allocation of funds in the stimulus act -- at the time and incredible and complicated government undertaking -- is respected in Washington . He does not have any extensive background in health care but the job is regarded as a managerial challenge . `` He 's strong . He 's very tough , '' said CNN political analyst David Gergen . `` It 's important in this job to be a coordinator ; you have to knock heads together . He 's tough enough to do that . '' Related : Crises endanger Democrats in Midterm . Gergen said that while Klain does n't have a health care background , he does have both domestic policy and foreign policy assignments on his portfolio and both will come into play as the administration deals with Ebola . Klain will report to both White House homeland security adviser Lisa Monaco and National Security Adviser Susan Rice , according to a White House official . A former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden and also to then-Vice President Al Gore , Klain is currently president of Case Holdings and general counsel of Revolution , an investment group . He has clerked for the U.S. Supreme Court and headed up Gore 's effort during the 2000 Florida recount and was portrayed in the HBO movie `` Recount '' by Kevin Spacey . He could not be reached for comment on Friday . Even though some Republicans who had called for a more coordinated response seized on his lack of a health care background as a disqualifier . House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce said Obama should have tapped someone with medical experience . `` Given the mounting failings in the Obama administration 's response to the Ebola outbreak , it is right that the President has sought to task a single individual to coordinate its response , '' the California Republican said . `` But I have to ask why the president did n't pick an individual with a noteworthy infectious disease or public health background . '' Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida had called for an Ebola czar to coordinate the government 's response to the deadly virus , but said Friday that `` already , concerned have been raised about the president 's choice . '' `` I hope Mr. Klain will come forward quickly with a set of concrete actions to reassure Americans that this administration is taking this situation seriously , including but not limited to common sense travel restrictions on individuals from the affected countries in West Africa , '' he said . Biden , though , endorsed Klain 's selection in a tweet . And as for the term `` Ebola czar , '' it is not officially endorsed by the White House . `` As far as I 'm concerned , you can call him anything you want , '' Earnest told reporters . `` We call him the Ebola Response Coordinator . '' Related : Obama says Ebola czar 'may make sense ' CNN 's Eric Bradner contributed to this report .
President Obama will name Ron Klain as `` Ebola czar '' a position that has been vacant since the departure of Tom Frieden in February. Klain works for an investment group , but has worked for Vice President Joe Biden .