Two prominent Indian-Americans among Joe Biden’s core advisers

Two prominent Indian-Americans are among Democratic Presidential minee Joe Biden’s "core visers" who have been guiding him on issues ranging from coronavirus pandemic, ecomic recovery to foreign policy and climate change, a media report said.

Biden, “plotting an ambitious presidency that would begin amid twin health and ecomic crises, is leaning on veteran visers with high-level governmental experience rar than outsiders and ideological rivals to help guide him on subjects including coronavirus pandemic and country’s diminished standing in world,” a report in New York Times said.

Among those vising him on pandemic are Dr Vivek Murthy, former US Surgeon General who was appointed by President Barack Obama and Harvard ecomist Raj Chetty is among those who have briefed Biden on ecomic issues, report said. Murthy and former he of Food and Drug ministration David Kessler were among those present on a conference call convened by Biden campaign when it learned that two people who h travelled with Senator Kamala Harris h tested positive for coronavirus.

“Biden has spoken often of his briefings with experts, and Dr Murthy and Dr Kessler have been two of most prominent medical figures whose counsel Biden has sought during public health crisis,” NYT report said.

NYT report quoted Kessler as saying that in early days of pandemic, he and Murthy would brief Biden "every day, or four times a week.” “We would send in 80- to 90-p documents, take him through epidemic from epidemiology, rapeutics, vaccines, testing. Staff would join, originally by phone but y soon shifted to Zoom,” Kessler said, according to NYT report.

“ docs,” as Biden calls Kessler and Murthy, also “pore over research and data on virus and consult with modelers, vaccilogists and or experts so y can provide Biden with projections about coming months.” report ded that Biden has signalled that government’s top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci will have a prominent role in a Biden ministration.

On ecomy, Biden has cast a wide net for ecomic vice, soliciting input from several hundred policy experts, report said. Among those who have briefed Biden on ecomy are Chetty, “who has produced pathbreaking research on ecomic mobility and its roots in last several years” and former chair of Federal Reserve Janet Yellen. On issue of foreign policy, NYT report said Biden would come to “office with more foreign policy experience than any president in memory”.

While some in his inner circle of foreign policy and national security visers have worked for him through years, Biden’s aides understand that “assumptions that governed Obama policymaking have changed, including prospects for cooperation with China and importance of Middle East.” Among most influential foreign policy viser for Biden is Antony Blinken, who has previously worked for Biden on Senate Foreign Relations Committee and served as a deputy national security viser and deputy secretary of state under Obama.

“Kwn more for his diplomatic touch than any fixed ideas, he is considered a likely candidate for national security viser or secretary of state,” NYT report said.