A Biden economist

Joe Biden just announced the hire of a chief economist and economic policy adviser, one of the leading Washington spokesmen for a liberal, pro-labor economic stance, Jared Bernstein.

Bernstein, of the Economic Policy Institute, has been positioned to the left of most of Obama's team on big issues like trade and smaller ones like Wal-Mart; his pick is another indication both that Biden is putting a serious team together, and that there will be voices on the left on Obama's economic team.