As I discussed with you, I’ve received a number of inquiries over the last month regarding the recent appointment of Neomi Rao as Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (or “regulatory czar,” as the press has dubbed her) – specifically questions about whether there was any overlap between her formal position and my unofficial role. As I know you are aware, the answer to that question is an unequivocal no, for the simple reason that I had no duties whatsoever.
[...] Nevertheless, I chose to end this arrangement (with your blessing) because I did not want partisan bickering about my role to in any way cloud your administration or Ms. Rao’s important work. While I do not know Ms. Rao and played no part in her appointment, I am confident based on what I’ve read of her accomplishments that she is the right person for this important job.
"Neomi Rao as Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs." So Icahn wrote. Then --
Background?
What background? Try this:
Professor Rao serves as a Member of the Administrative Conference of the United States and on the Governing Council of the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice, as well as co-chair of the Section’s Regulatory Policy Committee.
Professor Rao’s scholarship is informed by her service in all three branches of the federal government. Prior to joining the Law School, she served as Associate Counsel and Special Assistant to President George W. Bush. Professor Rao also served as counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, where she was responsible for judicial nominations and constitutional law issues. In between government service, Professor Rao practiced in the London office of Clifford Chance LLP, specializing in public international law and arbitration. She clerked for Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and for Justice Clarence Thomas [...] Professor Rao received her J.D. with high honors from the University of Chicago Law School [...]
The finger on the kill switch.
___________UPDATE____________
AP released a story that Breitbart as well as other outlets carried, about the Icahn resignation from the "I had no say really" situation, and it looks fishy. So, Rao, who Icahn does not know and had no say in the appointment moved how? In some direction enriching Icahn with the distancing in advance of the shoe dropping?