Meese and Deaver Won’t Be Replaced; Staff Gets Duties

WASHINGTON —  President Reagan has no plans to replace Deputy Chief of Staff Michael K. Deaver or presidential counselor Edwin Meese III when they leave the White House later this year, a spokesman announced Friday.

The spokesman, Marlin Fitzwater, said the two Californians--who are among Reagan’s closest advisers--”came here in positions that were essentially designed for them.”

“I think it is unlikely that you would fill the exact same responsibilities and positions these two have,” Fitzwater said. Instead, he said, their responsibilities will be divided among other White House staff members.

Reagan has resubmitted to the Senate the nomination of Meese as attorney general to succeed William French Smith, another longtime Reagan confidant. Deaver announced Thursday that he will quit the White House staff in the spring and is considering offers to move into a high-paying public relations job in Washington.

The decision not to replace Meese should dampen speculation that the post will be given to Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, who has said that she intends to leave her position as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

Kirkpatrick is a favorite of some of the President’s most conservative supporters, who have expressed fears that Meese’s departure will leave few conservatives on the senior White House staff. So far, however, no job has been found for her, and she and Reagan are not scheduled to discuss her status until after he is inaugurated later this month for his second term.

The departures of Deaver and Meese will leave only one member of the original staff triumvirate that came to the White House with Reagan: Chief of Staff James A. Baker III, who led George Bush’s campaign for the Republican presidential nomination against Reagan in 1980.

Baker, who has been one of the most effective members of the White House staff in pushing Reagan’s program through Congress, has nevertheless failed to win much support from longtime conservatives concerned that he is too moderate.

Meese’s role as counselor has been at best ill-defined. As Baker took charge of the White House staff--a post originally envisioned for Meese--the counselor assumed few specific duties but continued to serve as an adviser to Reagan.

Controls the Flow

Deaver, on the other hand, was given a title second to Baker’s, but there has been no doubt in the White House about his role. His office is the closest of all senior staff members’ quarters to Reagan’s office, and he controls the flow of papers--and visitors--to the Oval Office.

He oversees all public relations aspects of the presidency and is considered keeper of Reagan’s public image. It has been Deaver that other White House staff members have consulted to determine Reagan’s mood, and it has been to Deaver that Reagan has turned when particularly sensitive missions arose.

Deaver’s duties include responsibility for the White House scheduling office, media relations and advance trip work. Fitzwater said the specific supervisory duties will be turned over to Baker.