By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 07:34 EST, 5 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:30 EST, 5 June 2013 . In a move likely to infuriate Senate Republicans, President Barack Obama's national security adviser Tom Donilon is resigning to be replaced by U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, marking a significant shakeup to the White House foreign policy team. A White House official confirmed the personnel changes Wednesday morning ahead of a planned announcement by the president later at 2.30 p.m. in the Rose Garden. Donilon has been a key foreign policy adviser to Obama since he first took office. But the 58-year-old had been expected to depart sometime this year, with Rice seen as the likely candidate to replace him. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice. Rice is to become President Barack Obama's national security adviser, it was reported today . Rice, a close Obama confidante, came under withering criticism from Republicans as part of the investigations into the deadly terror attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans were killed in the attack, including the U.S. ambassador, Christopher Stevens. She appeared on five Sunday shows . after the September 11th, 2012 attack and claimed the Benghazi consulate . raid was triggered by protests over an anti-Islam film. The . Obama administration later acknowledged there were in fact no protests . at the consulate although they have tried to claim that protests else . that may have excited the situation. Last . month, under massive pressure from the media, the White House released . the infamous 'talking points' that Rice was meant to stick to when . discussing the attack - which led to the death of the U.S. ambassador . Christopher Stevens. The . emails revealed the drafting and radical re-drafting of the . administrations storyline in anticipation of Rice's appearances on . television. The CIA, led at the time by David Petraeus wanted to include references to militant threats from Islamic extremists - but ultimately these were removed after objections from various White House figures. While it is not clear what level of involvement Rice had in the evolution of the 'talking points', officials speaking in her defense said that she was only reiterating the information she was handed. By promoting Rice, President Obama opens himself up to charges of rewarding those associated with the ongoing Benghazi controversy. Outgoing U.N. Ambassador Rice is the second official involved in the incident to receive a promotion. Last month, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland was nominated as assistant secretary of state. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon speaks during the daily news briefing at the White House in May - he is being replaced by Susan Rice in July . Last year following his thumping . election victory over Republican Mitt Romney, President Obama had wanted . to pick Rice as his replacement for Hilary Clinton at the State . Department. However, her nomination was denied by . Republican's who felt her role in the Benghazi attack had not be . sufficiently explained - and even suggested that she had not been honest . in her explanations of the talking points. She withdrew herself from . consideration only when it became clear that Senators John McCain and . Linsdey Graham would block her path and instead the post went to John . Kerry. It what could be seen as a thumb in . the face to some Republicans, her new job is arguably more influential . than it would be at the State Department. She will have the ear of the . president on a daily basis and could potentially advise him on issues . that go beyond a foreign policy remit. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice performing her role - it has been announced today that she will take over as President Obama's National Security Advise . The U.S. Consulate in Benghazi came under terror attack on September 11th 2012 which led to the death of the American ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens . Christopher Stevens, the U.S. ambassador to Libya died along with three embassy staff on September 11, 2012, as they rushed away from a consulate building in Benghazi . Indeed, what could potentially be . more satisfying for Rice is that unlike the Secretary of State role, the . National Security Adviser does not require Senate approval. Senior Republicans reacted in disgust to the appointment of Susan Rice to the position of National Securirty Adviser. Senator Rand Paul said on Wednesday morning that he couldn't begin to contemplate why she was promoted. 'I can’t imagine, one, that we would be keeping Ambassador Rice in any significant position, much less promoting her to an important position,' Paul (R-Ky.) said on Fox’s 'America’s Newsroom.' 'How will the administration ever have the authority for people to believe what they’re saying, when they’re promoting someone who directly and deliberately misled the public over Benghazi?' Obama will also name Samantha Power, a . human rights expert and former White House adviser, to replace Rice as . the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Power is a respected former journalist who started her career as a 22-year-old freelance reporter in Bosnia - where she developed her staunch opinions on U.S. intervention on moral grounds. An armed man holding his rifle as he stands next to buildings set on fire at the US consulate, in Benghazi, Libya, 11 September 2012 . In 2002, Power wrote and published the Pullitzer Prize winning book, 'A Problem from Hell': America and the Age of Genocide' - which led her to be named two years later as one of Time's 110 most influential people in the world. In 2008 she joined then Senator Obama's office as a foreign policy adviser but had to step down after she called Hilary Clinton 'a monster' in reported comments she made to the Scotsman newspaper. From 2009 until this February she was serving on the president's National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director running the Office of Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights. Power's husband is Harvard Law School professor Cass Sunstein, who is a widely admired intellectual and a good friend of President Obama. The White House official said Donilon is expected to stay on the job until early July, after Obama wraps up overseas trips to Europe and Africa, as well as an unusual summit in California later this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The official insisted on anonymity in order to discuss the personnel changes before they were publicly announced. Samantha Power,  former Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights at the National Security Council and foreign policy adviser to President Barack Obama, emerges from the West Wing of the White House in Washington . Donilon has overseen a foreign policy agenda at the White House that put increased emphasis on the U.S. relationship with Asia. He's also played a key role in the administration's counterterrorism strategy, including the raid that led to the death of Osama bin Laden, and in managing the complex U.S. ties with Russia. Rice, who first started working for Obama during his 2008 presidential campaign, has a close relationship with the president and many of his advisers. She's known for being outspoken on human rights issues and also pushed for a more interventionist strategy in Libya.
President Barack Obama's top national security adviser Tom Donilon is resigning and will be replaced by Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N.
Rice, a close Obama confidante, came under withering criticism from .
Republicans as part of the investigations into the deadly attack on a .
U.S. compound in Benghazi .
Samantha Power, a .
human rights expert and former White House adviser is set to replace Rice at the U.N.
In 2008 Power resigned from then-Senator Obama's team after calling Hilary Clinton 'a monster'
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 07:34 EST, 5 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:30 EST, 5 June 2013 . In a move likely to infuriate Senate Republicans, President Barack Obama's national security adviser Tom Donilon is resigning to be replaced by U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, marking a significant shakeup to the White House foreign policy team. A White House official confirmed the personnel changes Wednesday morning ahead of a planned announcement by the president later at 2.30 p.m. in the Rose Garden. Donilon has been a key foreign policy adviser to Obama since he first took office. But the 58-year-old had been expected to depart sometime this year, with Rice seen as the likely candidate to replace him. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice. Rice is to become President Barack Obama's national security adviser, it was reported today . Rice, a close Obama confidante, came under withering criticism from Republicans as part of the investigations into the deadly terror attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans were killed in the attack, including the U.S. ambassador, Christopher Stevens. She appeared on five Sunday shows . after the September 11th, 2012 attack and claimed the Benghazi consulate . raid was triggered by protests over an anti-Islam film. The . Obama administration later acknowledged there were in fact no protests . at the consulate although they have tried to claim that protests else . that may have excited the situation. Last . month, under massive pressure from the media, the White House released . the infamous 'talking points' that Rice was meant to stick to when . discussing the attack - which led to the death of the U.S. ambassador . Christopher Stevens. The . emails revealed the drafting and radical re-drafting of the . administrations storyline in anticipation of Rice's appearances on . television. The CIA, led at the time by David Petraeus wanted to include references to militant threats from Islamic extremists - but ultimately these were removed after objections from various White House figures. While it is not clear what level of involvement Rice had in the evolution of the 'talking points', officials speaking in her defense said that she was only reiterating the information she was handed. By promoting Rice, President Obama opens himself up to charges of rewarding those associated with the ongoing Benghazi controversy. Outgoing U.N. Ambassador Rice is the second official involved in the incident to receive a promotion. Last month, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland was nominated as assistant secretary of state. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon speaks during the daily news briefing at the White House in May - he is being replaced by Susan Rice in July . Last year following his thumping . election victory over Republican Mitt Romney, President Obama had wanted . to pick Rice as his replacement for Hilary Clinton at the State . Department. However, her nomination was denied by . Republican's who felt her role in the Benghazi attack had not be . sufficiently explained - and even suggested that she had not been honest . in her explanations of the talking points. She withdrew herself from . consideration only when it became clear that Senators John McCain and . Linsdey Graham would block her path and instead the post went to John . Kerry. It what could be seen as a thumb in . the face to some Republicans, her new job is arguably more influential . than it would be at the State Department. She will have the ear of the . president on a daily basis and could potentially advise him on issues . that go beyond a foreign policy remit. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice performing her role - it has been announced today that she will take over as President Obama's National Security Advise . The U.S. Consulate in Benghazi came under terror attack on September 11th 2012 which led to the death of the American ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens . Christopher Stevens, the U.S. ambassador to Libya died along with three embassy staff on September 11, 2012, as they rushed away from a consulate building in Benghazi . Indeed, what could potentially be . more satisfying for Rice is that unlike the Secretary of State role, the . National Security Adviser does not require Senate approval. Senior Republicans reacted in disgust to the appointment of Susan Rice to the position of National Securirty Adviser. Senator Rand Paul said on Wednesday morning that he couldn't begin to contemplate why she was promoted. 'I can’t imagine, one, that we would be keeping Ambassador Rice in any significant position, much less promoting her to an important position,' Paul (R-Ky.) said on Fox’s 'America’s Newsroom.' 'How will the administration ever have the authority for people to believe what they’re saying, when they’re promoting someone who directly and deliberately misled the public over Benghazi?' Obama will also name Samantha Power, a . human rights expert and former White House adviser, to replace Rice as . the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Power is a respected former journalist who started her career as a 22-year-old freelance reporter in Bosnia - where she developed her staunch opinions on U.S. intervention on moral grounds. An armed man holding his rifle as he stands next to buildings set on fire at the US consulate, in Benghazi, Libya, 11 September 2012 . In 2002, Power wrote and published the Pullitzer Prize winning book, 'A Problem from Hell': America and the Age of Genocide' - which led her to be named two years later as one of Time's 110 most influential people in the world. In 2008 she joined then Senator Obama's office as a foreign policy adviser but had to step down after she called Hilary Clinton 'a monster' in reported comments she made to the Scotsman newspaper. From 2009 until this February she was serving on the president's National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director running the Office of Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights. Power's husband is Harvard Law School professor Cass Sunstein, who is a widely admired intellectual and a good friend of President Obama. The White House official said Donilon is expected to stay on the job until early July, after Obama wraps up overseas trips to Europe and Africa, as well as an unusual summit in California later this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The official insisted on anonymity in order to discuss the personnel changes before they were publicly announced. Samantha Power,  former Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights at the National Security Council and foreign policy adviser to President Barack Obama, emerges from the West Wing of the White House in Washington . Donilon has overseen a foreign policy agenda at the White House that put increased emphasis on the U.S. relationship with Asia. He's also played a key role in the administration's counterterrorism strategy, including the raid that led to the death of Osama bin Laden, and in managing the complex U.S. ties with Russia. Rice, who first started working for Obama during his 2008 presidential campaign, has a close relationship with the president and many of his advisers. She's known for being outspoken on human rights issues and also pushed for a more interventionist strategy in Libya.
security adviser Tom Donilon is resigning to be President Barack Obama's national security Obama confidante, came under withering criticism from Republicans as part of the investigations into the deadly terror attack on a U.S. compound in May - he is being replaced by Susan Rice in Obama will also name Samantha Power, a . human rights expert and former White House adviser, to replace Rice as . the U.S. ambassador to the set on fire at the US consulate, in Benghazi, Hilary Clinton 'a monster' in reported comments