Yellen Approved for Treasury Chief by Senate Panel

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) said he hoped the unanimous GOP support for Ms. Yellen “signals an interest by me and I know by all of my Republican colleagues in working cooperatively and in a bipartisan way.”

While several Republicans said they disagreed with Ms. Yellen on policy issues, including on tax increases and proposals to raise the minimum wage, they said she was qualified to lead the Treasury and hoped she would continue to work with Republicans in Congress.

If confirmed, Ms. Yellen would become the first woman to be the U.S. Treasury secretary, and the first person to lead the Treasury, Fed and the White House Council of Economic Advisers, which she chaired during the Clinton administration.

The 74-year-old economist has been at the forefront of economic policy-making for 25 years, and she will now play a key role advancing President Biden’s economic agenda, starting with an ambitious $1.9 trillion economic relief package that is already facing resistance from GOP lawmakers worried about its cost.

The plan provides for another round of direct stimulus payments, extended and enhanced jobless benefits, funding for schools and first responders and the creation of a nationwide vaccination program. It also includes long standing Democratic priorities, such as raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour and expanding paid leave for workers.

Ms. Yellen made the case for the Biden administration’s plan at her confirmation hearing this week, urging lawmakers to set aside concerns about rising budget deficits and act big to avoid a protracted economic downturn.

“Economists don’t always agree, but I think there is a consensus now: Without further action, we risk a longer, more painful recession now—and long-term scarring of the economy later,” she said Tuesday.

She will take the reins at the Treasury as the economic recovery falters amid a surge in coronavirus cases and deaths. After seven months of job gains, U.S. employers shed 140,000 jobs in December, while retail sales fell for the third straight month.

Ms. Yellen at her hearing said the Biden administration wouldn’t seek to raise taxes on the wealthy or corporations until the economy had recovered further from the pandemic. She also sounded a hawkish note on China, affirmed the U.S.’s commitment to market-determined exchange rates and said she plans to establish a hub within the Treasury to review financial stability risks and tax incentives around climate change, which she called an existential threat.

Write to Kate Davidson at [email protected]