What does Obama's choice of Gene Sperling as his new top economic adviser mean? Roosevelt Institute fellows and ND20 friends weigh in.

Thomas Ferguson, Senior Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute and Professor of Political Science at U Mass, Boston:

Before he joined Treasury as Geithner's "Counselor," Sperling "earned" almost $900,000 advising Goldman Sachs on its philanthropic ventures, plus almost half a million dollars more from the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. Never mind the fees and honoraria he picked up from all the other financial luminaries. The key point is that payments on this scale to such political figures do not represent normal market rates for real services. He took in more from Goldman alone than many full time lobbyists earn in a year. What the White House really just announced are the names of the financial monsters with gold-plated access to the highest levels of economic policy making. That is, the winners of a rigged, money-driven lottery, and the people paying are going to be the rest of the citizenry. It's enough to drive one to drink a giant pot of tea.

Bo Cutter, Senior Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute and served as leader of Obama’s OMB transition team:

Gene Sperling is a very able man, whether or not he is a good choice as Chair of The National Economic Council is a different question. My own view is that both the President and the nation require a fundamentally different economic policy. Gene is certainly capable of delivering that policy but is he temperamentally ready to lead in developing it, and has President Obama asked for it?

Marshall Auerback, Senior Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute:

President Obama has spoken of Reagan as a transformational president, and he was quite dismissive of the Clinton Administration during the 2008 primaries. Yet with the appointment of yet another Clintonista, Gene Sperling, one would be hard-pressed to find any differentiating factor between the Clinton and Obama presidencies. Arguably, the current administration is even worse, since Clinton at least had a few progressive voices such as Robert Reich in his Cabinet. True, Clinton faced relatively minor problems while Obama is neck-deep in recession and must deal with stagnant income growth. The difference in conditions allowed the former president to reshape his administration by positioning and spin doctoring, which provided the illusion of success. But Obama can only succeed by altering outcomes. Americans want jobs, lower unemployment, economic growth, a reduced deficit and an end to the recession. They will not be assuaged or appeased by nice speeches or perceived moves to the center via "triangulation".

Edward Harrison, Founder of Credit Writedowns and New Deal 2.0 Contributor:

The Gene Sperling pick is very much in line with what I expected now that the Obama Administration has moved into re-election mode. Beside making the technical recovery stick, above all, the administration wants to present a more pro-incumbent business face. The Sperling announcement allows them to do so without being perceived on the left as completely submitting to Wall Street. There is nothing objectionable about Gene Sperling's positions on issues of substance for the Democratic base. However, in my view, the Sperling appointment is another indication of the revolving door between Wall Street and politics. Sperling is yet another Clinton appointee who left for big money on Wall Street only to re-appear in the Obama Administration. How do the French put it? Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

Lynn Parramore, Editor of New Deal 2.0 and Media Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute:

Welcome to another episode of 'As the Revolving Door Turns', a depressing soap opera that has become a signature of the Obama administration. Sperling is yet another example of an adviser with close ties to Wall Street formed by chains of big money. He is also a known deficit hawk -- just the sort of discredited economic thinking we should be leaving behind as the nation continues to suffer. This sounds like good news for Wall Street; bad news for the American people.