President Obama announced the resignation of White House press secretary Jay Carney Friday afternoon.
Obama also announced that current deputy press secretary Josh Earnest will replace Carney in the post.
“Be nice to Josh during his initiation,” Obama encouraged the laughing press corps.
Carney is the second Obama White House press secretary and has held the post since February 2011.
Earlier Friday, Obama separately announced the resignation of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki after bipartisan calls for his removal over apparently rampant mismanagement of the veteran health system.
Carney’s resignation appears unrelated to the VA scandal, and as reported by The Daily Caller, had been imminently expected.
