The President-elect Joe Biden, announced the names of the economic team that will accompany him as of January 20. It is a group of progressive and diverse economists among which Janet Yellen stands out as a Treasury nominee. All of Biden's nominated officials served in the two previous Democratic administrations, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. In parallel, the president-elect appointed his communication team for the White House, which for the first time in the country's history will be made up solely of women. As Biden finalizes preparations for his inauguration, President Donald Trump refuses to step down and continues to wave the banner of voter fraud, pushing lawsuits across the country that fall one by one.
"This team is made up of respected and proven innovative officials who will help our towns hardest hit by COVID-19 and deal with structural inequalities in our economy," Biden said in a statement issued by his transition team. If confirmed by the Senate, Yellen, who is a former president of the Federal Reserve (Fed), "will be the first woman to lead the Treasury Department in its 231-year history."
Yellen, 74, vowed to work to "rebuild" the American dream. "As a country, we face great challenges. To recover, we must rebuild the American dream, a society where each person can rise to the fullest and dream even bigger for their children," Yellen tweeted. "As Secretary of the Treasury, I will work every day to rebuild that dream for everyone," she added.
The veteran economist made history by becoming the first president of the Fed, and now she will have the challenge of revitalizing the US economy after the severe blow she suffered from the coronavirus.
Meanwhile, Adewale "Wally" Adeyemo was nominated as undersecretary of the Treasury, making him the first African-American in the position if confirmed. In addition, Cecilia Rouse was appointed to the chairmanship of the Council of Economic Advisers, and Jared Bernstein and Heather Boushey will be members of said Council. The former was chief economist in the early years of the Barack Obama administration (2009-2017), of which Biden was vice president, and the latter was a co-founder of the Center for Equitable Growth in Washington.
