Joe Biden nominates team to confront economic fallout from coronavirus

President-elect Joe Biden has disclosed plan to nominate a team of liberal and centrist economic advisers to serve alongside planned Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen.

People familiar with his plans disclosed this on Sunday November 29, 2020, as he prepares to confront the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Mr. Biden has chosen Neera Tanden, head of the Center for American Progress, a center-left think tank, to serve as director of the Office of Management and Budget.

The former vice president has picked Cecilia Rouse, a Princeton University labor economist, to be chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers, these people said.

The president-elect has also selected Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo, a former senior international economic adviser during the Obama administration, to serve as Ms. Yellen’s top deputy at the Treasury Department.

“And he will turn to two campaign economic advisers, Jared Bernstein and Heather Boushey, to serve as members of the CEA alongside Ms. Rouse,” the people said.

Mr. Biden’s selections include outspoken advocates for aggressive fiscal stimulus to help return the economy quickly to its pre-pandemic health, a cause that could run into resistance in a closely divided Congress.

The advisers are also known for advocating expanded government spending they say would boost the economy’s long-term potential, in areas that are liberal priorities such as education, infrastructure and the green economy, and policy changes aimed at narrowing racial disparities in the economy.

Several of the choices, including Ms. Rouse, Mr. Bernstein and Mr. Adeyemo, are former Obama administration officials who played key roles in the aftermath of the financial crisis.

Cecilia Rouse would be the first woman of color to chair the Council of Economic Advisers. She would be the first woman of color to chair the Council of Economic Advisers.

Some members of the economic team are likely to please party progressives.

All three picks for the CEA are known for their work giving greater prominence in policy debates to inequality.

But others may draw some criticism from the left. Ms. Tanden has publicly tangled with allies of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Mr. Adeyemo has worked at BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager, a potential red flag for some progressives opposed to any nominees with ties to Wall Street.

Many members of the new team have played down concerns about budget deficits, which have reached record levels over the past year, arguing that now isn’t the time for policy makers to worry about rising deficits and debt, and that the risks of doing too little to support the economy are far greater than the risks of borrowing and spending too much. That marks a shift within the Democratic Party from Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, who both focused on deficit reduction.

Mr. Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are expected to introduce his key economic picks Tuesday in Wilmington, Del., as his incoming administration faces a challenging economic outlook with millions of Americans still seeking work and signs that job growth may be slowing heading into the winter.

One member of Mr. Biden’s economic team isn’t expected to be announced Tuesday: the head of his National Economic Council.

“He is considering Brian Deese, a former senior Obama administration official and a BlackRock executive,” one of the people familiar with the discussions said.

“Another candidate is Roger Ferguson, chief executive of the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America,” the person said.

Mr. Ferguson is a former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve and one of the nation’s most prominent Black executives.

Mr. Biden on Sunday announced his White House senior communications team, an all-female, seven-member group that includes Jen Psaki, a former Obama White House communications director, as his incoming White House press secretary; Kate Bedingfield as his communications director; and Symone Sanders as senior adviser and chief spokesperson for Ms. Harris.

News Agencies