Meta replaces policy chief Nick Clegg with former Republican staffer Joel Kaplan ahead of Trump inauguration

Facebook parent Meta is replacing its president of global affairs, Nick Clegg, with Joel Kaplan, the company's current policy vice president and a former Republican Party staffer.

The shake-up comes three weeks before President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration, and it's the latest sign of how tech companies are positioning themselves for a new administration in Washington.

Clegg, a former British deputy prime minister, said he is stepping down, citing the new year as the right time to move on. He'll be replaced by Kaplan, who will take on the title of chief global affairs officer.

Kaplan was White House deputy chief of staff under former President George W. Bush, and he appeared at the New York Stock Exchange with Vice President-elect JD Vance and Trump in December. He also attended Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing in 2018 as a personal friend, causing a controversy for the social media company.

"I will look forward to spending a few months handing over the reins — and to representing the company at a number of international gatherings in Q1 of this year," Clegg wrote in a memo to his staff that he shared on Facebook on Thursday.

Clegg joined the company in 2018 after a career in British politics with the Liberal Democrats party, and he helped Meta navigate incredible scrutiny, especially over the company's influence on elections and its efforts to control harmful content.

Clegg also helped steer the company through the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which Facebook shared user data with third-party political consultants. He also represented the company in Washington and London, frequently at panels for artificial intelligence and at congressional hearings.

"My time at the company coincided with a