Obama's Power Players

President Obama assembled the most powerful, experienced team of White House key staffers in memory, and many, in their own, unique ways, have left an imprint on his first 100 days -- and not in the ways you'd expect.

4973671Gregory Craig (White House Counsel): History will record Craig as being the President's chief ally in the fight with intelligence officials to declassify Bush-era documents documenting the CIA's interrogation of terrorism suspects.

Mr. Obama had made the decision early on, and his entire national security cabinet, including his influential chief counterterrorism adviser, John Brennan, objected voraciously. Craig held his own, and won out, in the end, with only a small compromise: those officials who had acted in good faith wouldn't be prosecuted.

Some officials complain that Mr. Obama circumvented the policy process and concentrated power in the hands of a few White House lawyers. Yep -- that's exactly what he did -- and that's why the decision, whether you support or not, is so audacious.

Craig's deputy, Mary De Rosa, has been the staff lead on most of the administration major national security decisions. Craig's views on executive power and institutional conflicts within the national security establishment will prevail upon Mr. Obama.

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Moran supervised a staff of press officials who work with the specialty publications, ranging from agriculture newspapers in Iowa to US Weekly. The tabloid magazines have been friendly to Mr. Obama because they've gotten good access -- scooplets, like how the Obamas parent.

It was Moran who organized the very successful transition coffees and dinners with liberal and conservative columnists. Her name isn't quoted in the papers much, but her influence is significant.

Though her new job – chief of staff at the Department of Commerce – is low-profile, it is quite powerful, and Moran will retain influence over the administration's economic policy.

One unsung hero from Moran's former department: Lauren Page, who translates the messaging ideas of the senior staff into plans that can be implemented. (A friend in the press office says of Page: "Coming from a meeting that she was running just now I can tell you that she does a lot of everything that actually matters.")

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Axelrod remains (quite often) the last person Mr. Obama talks to before bed (besides Michelle, of course). Other advisers say he's the "conscience" of the operation, often putting the kibosh on bad ideas and making sure Mr. Obama lives up to his campaign promises.

One example: it was Axelrod who first concluded that Tom Daschle's tax problems were untenable, and that Mr. Obama could not hold his own staff to a lower standard.

Axelrod's chief of staff, Eric Lesser, is an able gatekeeper for his occasionally disorganized boss.

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This deference to Congress has helped speed Mr. Obama's presidential agenda along. Emanuel remains accessible to just about any member of Congress.

A side note: he is a small man with a big footprint, but he does not micromanage. His voice is heard on national security matters, but he tends to defer to others with more experience -- and that's a sign of his inner confidence.

He's the first aide to talk to Mr. Obama in the morning and the last aide to talk to him at night. Ever a policy-wonk, Emanuel's office works on special projects, too.

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Remember Iraq? That extremely thorny campaign issue? Almost everyone assumed that Mr. Obama would struggle to figure out a withdrawal route, that he'd spar with his generals, that he'd significantly compromise his own timeline.

Because of Jones's facilitation, however, Mr. Obama navigated the politics of the generals, the Department of Defense bureaucracy, Europe, the Saudis, the Iraqis, even the State Department -- and emerged with an Iraq withdrawal plan that looked a heck of a lot like the one he proposed during his campaign.

If it works, Jones deserves a lot of credit for ending that war. That said, James's footprint on other national security issues is less clear, and some outside Mr. Obama advisers wonder whether he's playing a lead role in coordinating homeland security and national security law policies.

The Atlantic's Marc Ambinder is CBS News' chief political consultant.