Patti Solis Doyle Out Williams In

Clinton Campaign Manager Steps Aside

Patti Solis Doyle, the campaign manager for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's (N.Y.) presidential bid has stepped down from that post and will be replaced by longtime Clinton operative Maggie Williams.

"This week Maggie will begin to assume the duties of campaign manager," Solis Doyle said in a statement. "I will serve as a senior adviser to Hillary and the campaign and travel with Hillary from time to time on the road."

The announcement followed Clinton's losses to Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) in the Louisiana presidential primary and the Nebraska and Washington state caucuses on Saturday.

Solis Doyle has a long relationship with the New York senator dating back to the days when she served as scheduler for Clinton in the White House. Solis Doyle served as Clinton's fundraising and strategic guru during her early political career, then managed Clinton's leadership political action committee in the years leading up to this presidential bid. Due to that relationship, there was little surprise when Clinton announced that Solis Doyle would manage the effort.

In the wake of a surprisingly large defeat at the hands of Obama in the Iowa caucuses, there was talk of a staff shakeup and Williams was brought in to coordinate the campaign's activities. That move came on the same night that Clinton scored a stunning come-from-behind victory in New Hampshire -- a win that quieted talk that Williams was being brought in to replace Solis Doyle.

Williams, like Solis Doyle, is someone with a long and close relationship with Hillary Clinton, having served as the then First Lady's chief of staff during the first term of former President Bill Clinton.

It was not immediately clear whether Solis Doyle's departure had to do with recent events in the campaign or was a decision made independent of those events. The Democratic race appears to have settled into a protracted battle for delegates, although Obama seems to have gained momentum following his three-state sweep last night in Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington state. Maine holds caucuses today and the Clinton campaign has expressed optimism about its chances there.

In a statement, Clinton praised Solis Doyle and said she looked forward to her continued advice in the coming months.

''Patti Solis Doyle has done an extraordinary job in getting us to this point -- within reach of the nomination -- and I am enormously grateful for her friendship and her outstanding work,'' Clinton said. ''And, as Patti has said, this already has been the longest presidential campaign in history and one that has required enormous sacrifices of everyone and our families."