Yellen Confirmed as Treasury Chief

She had an early look at the challenges of the new job in her confirmation hearing at the Senate Finance panel last week. Her argument that it's critical to "act big" now with emergency deficit spending to avoid long-term "scarring" in the economy was rejected by Republican lawmakers voicing concerns about rising debt.

Brooklyn, New York-born Yellen follows Jimmy Carter appointee G. William Miller, who also served as Treasury secretary after being Fed chair. She'll be the first to have had both those jobs and head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, a role she had in the Clinton administration.

"Right now, short term, I feel that we can afford what it takes to get the economy back on its feet, to get us through the pandemic," Yellen told the committee. She highlighted the opportunity presented by historically low interest rates, and flagged that debt-servicing payments as a share of the economy are lower today than before the 2008 financial crisis.

It's not just Republicans raising questions on Biden's $1.9 trillion proposal. White House economic adviser Brian Deese was asked in a Sunday call with lawmakers from both parties for the basis of such a large package coming on the heels of the $900 billion pandemic relief bill approved last month.

GOP members have also been vociferous in criticizing Biden's inclusion of social safety-net measures such as a minimum wage hike, which they have long opposed.

Staffing Up

Another near-term priority for Biden and Yellen is filling several senior positions at the Treasury. The president nominated Wally Adeyemo, who worked in the Obama administration, to be the deputy secretary, a position that requires Senate confirmation. But nominations are still to come for key undersecretary and assistant secretary jobs, among others.

The president has offered Nellie Liang, a Fed veteran and expert in financial regulation, the job of undersecretary for domestic finance, people familiar with the matter said last week, though no public announcement has been made. No Senate-confirmed person has been in the job since 2014, despite its importance in overseeing the issuance of U.S. government debt.

The Treasury earlier Monday announced other staffing appointments, including for Mark Mazur, who will join as a deputy assistant secretary for tax policy in the legislative affairs office. Natalie Earnest, who was chief spokesperson for the Treasury during the Obama administration, will be a counselor to Yellen.

Related: Yellen Tells Lawmakers to 'Act Big' on Virust Relief

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