John Podesta, Founder and Director, Center for American Progress, speaking at The Center for American Progress CAP 2019 Ideas Conference.
Michael Brochstein | SOPA Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images
John Podesta is joining President Joe Biden’s team as a senior advisor overseeing the implementation of $370 billion in clean energy projects under the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, the White House announced Friday.
The announcement got here on the identical day the Biden administration confirmed its top climate advisor Gina McCarthy is leaving in two weeks. Her deputy Ali Zaidi, who worked on climate initiatives within the Obama White House, will take over the job.
Podesta, who led former President Barack Obama’s climate strategy, can be tasked with doling out tax credits for clean energy products like solar panels and electric vehicles, and toward research and development in renewable energy production.
More recently, Podesta served as chair of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and founded the left-leaning think tank
The Center for American Progress.
“We’re fortunate that John Podesta will lead our continued innovation and implementation,” the White House said in an announcement. “His deep roots in climate and clean energy policy and his experience at senior levels of presidency mean we are able to truly hit the bottom running to reap the benefits of the huge clean energy opportunity in front of us.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre confirmed McCarthy’s Sept. 16 departure at a press briefing Friday.
“Gina is indeed leaving us,” Jean-Pierre said. “She, as , has been a frontrunner in what we’ve got seen as certainly one of the biggest investment in coping with climate change.”
