Tempest in the CEA

On top of all the other economic problems that his Administration faces, President Ford now must find two new members for his three-person Council of Economic Advisers. In a rather unusual move, both Gary L. Seevers, 37, and William J. Fellner, 69, will be leaving the council by April 1. The only member remaining is Chairman Alan Greenspan.

Seevers, an agricultural economist who joined the council as a staffer in 1970, will become the first chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a federal agency that will regulate the commodity exchanges. Fellner, a Yale professor emeritus, joined the Council in October 1973 after going on leave from Washington's conservative American Enterprise Institute. He will now return to the institute to continue his research into inflation and productivity.

In seeking replacements, Ford especially wants economists with academic backgrounds. A major hurdle in his quest: there are far fewer first-rate economists interested in public-policy issues among Republicans than among Democrats. Moreover, the new recruits will be asked to join the Council at a time when relations between Greenspan and his staff are somewhat strained. Both Fellner and Seevers resented Greenspan's failure to consult with them more during the policymaking that led to the President's new economic stance.

Unhappy Economists. The CEA's staff of 20 economists was no less unhappy. Many believed that Greenspan was not adequately presenting to the White House their views on the need for a much more expansive economic package, with bigger and more permanent tax cuts than the President advocated. Disagreements between the chairman and his economists erupted in a series of debates.

At last the economists did manage to have the budget reflect their thinking. Their pressure led to the publication in the budget of the bleak five-year economic projections, which starkly underscore the need for yet more stimulus. Though the worst of the tempest is probably over, there is no doubt that the CEA can use whatever help new members can bring. Under the Employment Act of 1946, which created the Council, its chief function is to advise the President on how best to hold down unemployment.

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