A former Trump drug policy expert is expected to rejoin the administration in a top role at the Health and Human Services office focused on behavioral health issues, two people familiar with the discussions told POLITICO.
Art Kleinschmidt, a longtime addiction and mental health expert, is in line to return to government as the deputy assistant secretary of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, said the two people, who were granted anonymity to discuss personnel moves that aren’t yet public.
Background and Experience
Kleinschmidt, a Project 2025 contributor, served as the deputy director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and as a senior adviser for health and addiction on the Domestic Policy Council and SAMHSA during the first Trump administration.
The move, which is not yet finalized, would come amid a broader restructuring at HHS that would shift SAMHSA and several other divisions underneath the umbrella of the new Administration for a Healthy America.
The so-called AHA, which HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Thursday, would combine five agencies in what the department characterized as an effort to better coordinate and centralize resources aimed at serving low-income Americans.
But it’s unclear whether Kennedy has the authority to unilaterally dissolve agencies, or whether SAMHSA would continue to exist as an independent entity under the broader AHA heading.
President Donald Trump has yet to nominate anyone to permanently head the agency as its assistant secretary.
A HHS spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and the department has offered few details about how it plans to conduct the planned restructuring.
Future Plans and Uncertainties
Kleinschmidt did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump also announced on Friday that he was nominating Sara Carter, a Fox News contributor, to be the next Office of National Drug Control Policy director.
“Sara is an Award Winning Journalist, who has been on the front lines of this International Fight for decades,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “From Afghanistan to our Border, Sarah’s relentless pursuit of Justice, especially in tackling the Fentanyl and Opioid Crisis, has exposed terrorists, drug lords, and sex traffickers. As our next Drug Czar, Sara will lead the charge to protect our Nation, and save our children from the scourge of drugs.”
