(Bloomberg) — Ben Harris, one of Joe Biden's top economic aides, has left the Treasury Department, capping roughly four years with the president through his campaign, transition team and then as the Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy.
Harris was the rare administration aide close to both the president and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. He helped develop many of the White House's key policies, including the Russian oil price cap in response to the invasion of Ukraine, the foundations of the Build Back Better legislative package, and the economic response to the recession caused by the pandemic. He also helped Yellen articulate her economic vision, including writing speeches and remarks on modern supply-side economics — which aims to bolster productive capacity through investments in areas including infrastructure and education.
"Ben has been one of my closest advisers across some of our department's most pressing issues — from helping us recover from a deep economic downturn, to advancing an ambitious domestic investment agenda and implementing a price cap on Russian energy exports," Yellen said in a statement.
Harris's departure comes as the Biden economic team undergoes a restructure, with Lael Brainard joining the White House as director of the National Economic Council, replacing Brian Deese, and the departure last month of senior advisor Cecilia Rouse.
Eric Van Nostrand, a former BlackRock Inc. executive who joined the administration in 2022, is serving as acting Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy at Treasury. It's unclear what Harris will do next.
Prior to serving in the Biden administration, Harris worked as the executive director of the Kellogg Public-Private Initiative and a research associate professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. He also worked as the chief economist and economic adviser to Biden when he was vice president and was the policy director of The Hamilton Project at the Brookings Institution, a policy think tank.
"Ben Harris has been one of the President's wisest and most trusted economic advisers for a decade — from the Vice President's office to the presidential campaign to the Treasury," said Bruce Reed, assistant to the president and deputy chief of staff. "He has been a key voice on Bidenomics as the Administration navigated the pandemic recovery, leading to record job creation and employment."
