Jack Lew chosen for Treasury

[Andrea]

WH Chief of Staff Jack Lew will be nominated for Treasury Secretary. He was apparently chosen for his experience negotiating with Republicans in Congress, not for economic knowledge or experience.

From the Washington Post:

Quote:~snip~

“Jack Lew is the guy you’d want there for upcoming fiscal deals, but it’s also very important to have folks on the team who will push the Keynesian, or jobs, imperative from the inside, even if that means a temporarily larger budget deficit,” said Jared Bernstein, a former White House economic adviser.

“Though they’ve been winning the arguments, the White House has been too stuck on the Republicans’ side of the field, basically arguing deficits and austerity measures,” Bernstein said. “They need to shake that up somehow.”

~snip~

Most of Lew's experience has been in government, but he did work for Citibank in wealth management and alternative investment during the Bushco years. What a relief! We wouldn't want someone who wasn't in the pocket of the bankers.


Anyone care to guess why Jared Bernstein is a former WH economic adviser?