Joe Biden is seeding his advisory boards and transition team with center-left economists and Black and Hispanic leaders as he prepares to confront income inequality and racial disparities exacerbated by the pandemic.
Why it matters: The Democratic nominee is signaling that if he wins in November, his administration may pivot away from the pro-Wall Street sentiment that pervades not just Trump's White House, but also reigned in Bill Clinton’s and Barack Obama’s administrations.
Details: Biden added two new co-chairs to his economic advisory council over the summer, sources tell Axios:
- William Spriggs, an economics professor at Howard University and chief economist to the AFL-CIO.
- Luis Ubiñas, an investor, former president of the Ford Foundation and former McKinsey director.
Biden has already put Big Business on notice that he’s serious about a progressive agenda, telling CNN's Jake Tapper last week that, if elected, on "day one," he would begin a push to increase the corporate tax rate to 28%, regardless of the unemployment rate.
But, but, but: Advisory councils don't necessarily set policy and Biden has hundreds of outside advisers. In-house advisers still tend to be the last voices in a candidate's ear.
The big picture: Many of Biden's current in-house economic advisers watched during the Obama administration as political aides deferred to Wall Street and congressional dealmakers over deficit concerns. They regarded that as a mistake and are determined not to let Biden underspend if he's elected....
- Jared Bernstein and Ben Harris, both of whom were Biden's chief economic advisers under Obama, are left-of-center economists who consistently pressed for more government stimulus and banking rules in the Obama