Biden economic adviser Brian Deese to step down this month

Brian Deese, a top economic adviser to President Biden and one of the architects of his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, will step down from his position this month, Fox Business has confirmed.

Deese will resign as director of the National Economic Council in the coming weeks, according to a senior White House official. 

"It has been an unspeakable privilege to serve @POTUS," Deese tweeted Thursday. "Thank you: For putting your trust in me; For leading us with resolve and integrity; and For Your unwavering vision that we can and will build an economy that works for all Americans." 

Brian Deese, director of the National Economic Council, speaks during a news conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., July 26, 2022. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

President Biden speaks inside the Roosevelt Room on national deficit reduction at the White House in Washington, on Friday, Oct. 21, 2022. (Tom Brenner for The Washington Post via Getty Images / Getty Images)

As head of the National Economic Council, Deese was a driving force behind Biden's economic agenda, helping to craft the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package, usher bipartisan infrastructure legislation through Congress, and making the case for Biden's Build Back Better plan, which was watered-down and passed in the Inflation Reduction Act last year.

A former senior adviser to President Barack Obama, Deese has long advocated for government intervention in the economy, helping to engineer the financial-crisis era bailout of the U.S. auto industry and advocating for the country's entry into the Paris Climate Accords. 

White House National Economic Council Director Brian Deese gestures as he speaks during the daily White House press briefing on Jan. 12, 2022, in Washington, D.C.  (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)

The White House announced Deese's departure Thursday. 

In a statement, President Biden thanked Deese for helping to "steer my economic vision into reality." 

"Brian’s work was critical to the passage of the most significant economic agenda in generations: the American Rescue Plan, which brought our economy back from the brink; the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the most significant investment in our nation’s infrastructure in generations; the CHIPs and Science Act, which ensures we make more high-end technology here at home so we can outcompete the world; and the Inflation Reduction Act, which is giving millions of families breathing room, investing in clean energy manufacturing, and addressing the climate crisis," Biden said. 

The president has not yet decided who will succeed him on the National Economic Council. Lael Brainard, the vice chair of the Federal Reserve, and Wally Adeyemo, the deputy Treasury secretary, are reported to be the top candidates for the job, according to the New York Times.

Deese's resignation follows that of Ron Klain, who officially left his position as White House chief of staff on Wednesday.