President-elect Biden will choose Janet Yellen, the former chair of the Federal Reserve, to become the first woman to lead Treasury, a source with knowledge of the pick confirmed to CNN.

The Treasury chief will be charged with leading America's economy out of the Trump recession as well as narrowing the staggering gap between rich and poor.

Yellen is no stranger to the limelight nor groundbreaking roles.

As head of the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2018, Yellen has already served a stint as the world's most powerful woman.

As Fed chief, Yellen ignored inflation hawks who incorrectly pushed her to rapidly raise interest rates.

Instead, she patiently waited to hike rates to allow more time for the economy to heal from the Bush recession.

"A Yellen-led Treasury would use the fiscal firepower of the United States to return to full employment," said Joe Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM US. "Yellen would be a great pick because she speaks to the whole economy."

"Leaning toward full employment as opposed to unnecessary worries about inflation would create the conditions for what will be called the Biden boom," Brusuelas said.

Yellen has the support of progressives, who are skeptical of those viewed as too cozy with Wall Street or Corporate America.

President-elect Biden's Transition Team, revealed earlier this month, includes several individuals with a history of taking on big banks.

Janet Yellen is high up on the list of people that progressives would find acceptable," Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, told CNN. "And we imagine the whole party would as well."

"Janet Yellen would faithfully implement the ambitious agenda Biden campaigned on," Green said.

Yellen's final act at the Fed was a stunning rebuke of a big bank.

Shortly before her tenure ended, Yellen in early 2018 imposed unprecedented sanctions against Wells Fargo for "widespread consumer abuses."

The penalties, which remain in place today, hobbled Wells Fargo and the bank has yet to recover.

"Janet Yellen has absolutely shown a willingness to challenge corporate power and not be intimidated by big banks," Green said. "That is a key ingredient."

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/23/b...den/index.html