Biden economic adviser stokes fear on left over Wall Street-friendly past – POLITICO

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As the economic recovery is already beginning to stall with millions of Americans out of work amid the resurging coronavirus, Deese’s record is stoking fears on the left that Biden’s administration will follow the same Wall Street-friendly policy playbook as Obama, which they say ultimately resulted in a drawn-out, sluggish and uneven recovery after the financial crisis.

“It is disturbing and discouraging to see people in key positions in the White House who played such a prominent role in getting us to where we are now,” said Consumer Federation of America director of investor protection Barbara Roper, about the impact the 2012 deregulatory push had on financial rules. “And Brian Deese is part of that.”

For his part, Biden has not suggested austerity measures will be on the docket, although he has said some of his longer-term priorities will require new revenue, such as higher taxes on the wealthy. He has argued instead that expansive economic relief measures will help reduce government deficits going forward.

“By acting now, even with deficit financing, we can add to growth in the near future,” Biden said in a speech in Delaware on Friday.

In announcing Deese, 42, as Biden’s main economic adviser, the transition team has touted his leading role in the government bailout of the U.S. auto industry and his efforts on climate change policy. Obama alums describe him as brilliant and compassionate and say he impressed White House officials so much back then that his portfolio of responsibilities rapidly grew even though he was only in his 30s. Some on the left, such as Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), have come to his defense.

“The positions he took during the Obama administration were largely implementing policy decisions other people made,” said Dennis Kelleher, who sits on the Biden policy transition team and heads of the nonprofit Better Markets, which advocates for more financial regulation.

Obama even singled Deese out in an exit interview in 2016 with Rolling Stone at the end of his presidency.

“He engineered the Paris Agreement, the [Hydrofluorocarbons] Agreement, the Aviation Agreement, may have helped save the planet, and he’s just doing it while he’s got two babies at home, and could not be a better person,” Obama said.

When asked to comment on Deese’s economic agenda, a transition team spokesperson pointed to Biden’s comments earlier this week praising him and outlining the administration’s priorities.

But Deese has already garnered considerable blowback for his post-administration job as global head of sustainable investing at BlackRock, a Wall Street titan that manages $7 trillion in assets; climate change advocates fear he will be too sympathetic to the finance industry.

His past statements suggest the fissures between him and those further to the left could be more extensive.

“Brian Deese may be a very good NEC Director,” tweeted Tyler Gellasch, a former aide to retired Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), a key lawmaker who opposed passage of the 2012 financial rollback. “He’s really smart and works hard. But when he was in the Obama admin, he pushed FOR financial deregulation and austerity.”

Source Article from https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/05/brian-deese-biden-coronavirus-economy-443014

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