Future scape goat?: The New York Times focused on Brian Deese, a 31 year old who interrupted his Yale law school studies to work for Obama and who ultimately found himself on his auto task force. They say he's "emerged as one of the most influential voices" behind Obama's restructuring game plan. With a build up like that, we know who they're gonna be point the finger at if it fails.....
But now, according to those who joined him in the middle of his crash course about the automakers’ downward spiral, he has emerged as one of the most influential voices in what may become President Obama’s biggest experiment yet in federal economic intervention.
While far more prominent members of the administration are making the big decisions about Detroit, it is Mr. Deese who is often narrowing their options.
A month ago, when the administration was divided over whether to support Fiat’s bid to take over much of Chrysler, it was Mr. Deese who spoke out strongly against simply letting the company go into liquidation, according to several people who were present for the debate.
“Brian grasps both the economics and the politics about as quickly as I’ve seen anyone do this,” said Lawrence H. Summers, the head of the National Economic Council who is not known for being patient whenever he believes an analysis is sub-par — or disagrees with his own. “And there he was in the Roosevelt Room, speaking up vigorously to make the point that the costs we were going to incur giving Fiat a chance were no greater than some of the hidden costs of liquidation.”
The 31-Year-Old in Charge of Dismantling G.M - NY Times
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