American economist and former Treasury Secretary who warned that the American Rescue Plan would overheat the economy
Born in New Haven, Connecticut, the son of two economists, Summers became a professor of economics at Harvard in 1983. After serving as chief economist of the World Bank from 1991 to 1993 he joined the Clinton Treasury and was the 71st Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to 2001, playing a leading role in the response to the Mexican, Asian and Russian financial crises and in financial deregulation, including the repeal of the Glass–Steagall Act. He was president of Harvard from 2001 to 2006 and director of the National Economic Council under Obama in 2009–10. In 2021 he called the American Rescue Plan "the least responsible macroeconomic policy we've had in the last 40 years" and warned of persistent inflation and possible stagflation.
Also known as: Lawrence Henry Summers
Activities and affiliations
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1983–
Scholarship and theory
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1999–2001
United States state institutionsSecretary of the Treasury
Economy, finance and planning
Career Timeline
- 1991–1993Chief Economist of the World Bank
- 1999–2001Secretary of the Treasury
- 2001–2006President of Harvard University
- 2009.01–2010.11Director of the National Economic Council