White House social secretary is stepping down

Desiree Rogers, the White House’s flamboyant social secretary who came under criticism after two uninvited guests crashed the Obamas’ only state dinner, is stepping down, White House officials said Friday.

A White House official said Julianna Smoot is the top candidate to succeed Rogers. A leading fundraiser during Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, Smoot is chief of staff to U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk.

Rogers, 50, a longtime Chicago friend to President Obama and the first lady, was widely disparaged after a couple from Virginia made their way into the state dinner, held Nov. 24 in honor of the Indian prime minister.

Rogers attended the dinner as a guest, breaking with the custom that the social secretary work the night and ensure the soiree goes smoothly.

Though the Secret Service accepted the lion’s share of the blame for the security breach, Rogers became an easy target for critics because of her flair for self-promotion. She was not asked to leave her job, but has expressed a desire to go back into the private sector, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Friday.

Rogers was unavailable for comment, a spokeswoman for First Lady Michelle Obama said. The Obamas issued a statement after word of Rogers’ resignation spread, which read in part:

“We are enormously grateful to Desiree Rogers for the terrific job she’s done as the White House social secretary. When she took this position, we asked Desiree to help make sure that the White House truly is the People’s House, and she did that by welcoming scores of everyday Americans through its doors, from wounded warriors to local schoolchildren to NASCAR drivers.”

Rogers, a New Orleans native with a Harvard MBA, held high-level corporate jobs in Illinois and led its lottery before coming to Washington.

As recently as mid-January, Michelle Obama continued to publicly support Rogers. Meeting with reporters, the first lady called the state dinner “phenomenal” and an “outstanding success.”

In a reference to the gate-crashers, she added: “For me, the other stuff that everybody is talking about is a footnote.”

But asked about Rogers’ handling of the dinner, she seemed to sidestep the question, saying that everyone in the White House was working with the Secret Service to ensure the gaffe was not repeated.

kskiba@tribune.com