Trump taps Kevin Hassett as National Economic Council head

President-elect Trump has chosen former White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett to lead the National Economic Council in his next administration, he said Tuesday.

“I am very pleased to announce that Dr. Kevin A. Hassett, of Massachusetts will serve as the Director of the White House National Economic Council,” Trump said in a statement. 

“As my Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, Kevin played a crucial role in helping to design and pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, and stood with me as we pursued our enormously successful agenda to Make America Great Again,” he added

Hassett is a conservative economist who has done prior work at the American Enterprise Institute.

In Trump’s previous administration, Hassett was chair of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) beginning in 2017, with that year’s Republican tax law coming about with his help. Hassett exited the role in mid-2019.

“His very talented replacement will be named as soon as I get back to the U.S. I want to thank Kevin for all he has done – he is a true friend!” Trump said in a post on the social platform X when announcing Hassett’s exit a little over five years ago.

Hassett came back to the Trump White House for a short period in 2020 as an adviser to the then-president to help with Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.