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Jason FurmanAmerican economist, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Barack Obama.
Date of Birth: 18.08.1970
Country:  USA |
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Biography of Jason Furman
Jason Furman is an American economist and the former Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Barack Obama. He has had an impressive career as an advisor to two presidents and three presidential candidates, as well as being a professor and economist.
Early Life and Education
Born in New York City, Furman grew up in a family of builders. His father, Jay Furman, was a prominent local developer who donated over $20 million to New York University and served on its board of trustees. His mother, Gail Furman, was a child psychologist and headed the family's foundation, the Furman Foundation Inc, which sponsored mostly left-leaning nonprofit organizations. Furman's brother, Jess Furman, is a federal judge for the Southern District of New York.
Furman attended Harvard University, where he shared a dorm room with Matt Damon for some time. He graduated in 1992 with a bachelor's degree in sociology and later earned a master's degree from the London School of Economics. He then returned to Harvard, obtaining a Master of Business Administration in 1995 and a Ph.D. in economics in 2003. His dissertation was supervised by N. Gregory Mankiw, who was the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President George W. Bush.
Career
In 1996, while still a graduate student at Harvard, Furman was hired as a special assistant to the President for economic policy during the Clinton administration. He was recommended for the position by renowned economist Joseph Stiglitz. Furman also served on the Council of Economic Advisers during that time. This was not the last time Furman would work with Stiglitz; they later collaborated at the World Bank.
Furman was involved in the presidential campaigns of Al Gore and Wesley Clark to some extent, with support from his spouse, Eve Gerber, who was Clark's speechwriter. In 2004, Furman became the Director of Economic Policy for John Kerry's presidential campaign.
In recent years, Furman has worked as an expert on budgetary issues at the Brooklyn Institute, alongside former Clinton Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin. He was also in charge of the "Hamilton" project, a special group focused on economic policy research and promoting policies that could stimulate economic growth.
From January 28, 2009, Furman served as the Deputy Director of the National Economic Council. He has also been a visiting lecturer at New York University, Columbia University, and Yale University. His research and policy focus primarily on taxation, healthcare, and the American social insurance system.
Furman has faced criticism for actively supporting Walmart's business model, which has drawn criticism from labor organizations and unions. This criticism intensified when Furman once again participated in supporting a presidential candidate, this time being Barack Obama.
Furman currently resides in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Eve, and their two children, Henry and Louise.
