... And Then There Were None

The last good economist in the Obama Administration is leaving:

Jared Bernstein, Vice President Joe Biden‘s economic adviser and one of the longest serving economists in the Obama White House, will leave the administration at the end of the month, a White House official said.

Mr. Bernstein, a liberal voice in an increasingly centrist White House, will join the liberal-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. He is also in advanced talks to be an on-air commentator for Bloomberg News Service’s television network.

Mr. Bernstein’s departure comes after the exit of two liberal economic allies, Christina Romer and Larry Summers, and the arrival of deal-making pragmatists like Mr. Summers’ replacement as National Economic Council director, Gene Sperling, and Bruce Reed, Mr. Biden’s new chief of staff who headed the centrist Democratic Leadership Council.

Bernstein was apparently the only remaining advocate for focusing on real problems (unemployment, the economy) against the entire administration which wants to spend the next year tackling a fake problem (the deficit).

The same way that Romer's first post-White House speeches were very revealing, it'll be interesting to hear what Bernstein has to say whenever he starts talking. Truly depressing stuff.