The Latest: Yellen warns quick action needed on virus impact

Janet Yellen, who has been is nominated by President-Elect Joe Biden to serve as Secretary of the Treasury, arrives for an event with Biden at The Queen theater, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

President-elect Joe Biden speaks as Vice President-elect Kamala Harris listens at left, during an event to introduce their nominees and appointees to economic policy posts at The Queen theater, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

President-elect Joe Biden speaks Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

This Nov. 16, 2018, photo, file provided by the Delaware Humane Association shows Joe Biden and his newly-adopted German shepherd Major, in Wilmington, Del. President-elect Biden will likely wear a walking boot for the next several weeks as he recovers from breaking his right foot while playing with his dog Major on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2020, his doctor said. (Stephanie Carter/Delaware Humane Association via AP)

This Nov. 16, 2018, photo, provided by the Delaware Humane Association shows Joe Biden and his newly-adopted German shepherd Major, in Wilmington, Del. President-elect Biden will likely wear a walking boot for the next several weeks as he recovers from breaking his right foot while playing with his dog Major on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2020, his doctor said. (Stephanie Carter/Delaware Humane Association via AP)

In this Aug. 14, 2019, file photo, former Fed Chair Janet Yellen speaks with Fox Business Network guest anchor Jon Hilsenrath in the Fox Washington bureau in Washington. President-elect Joe Biden is expected to name several of his most senior economic advisers in the coming days. Yellen could be one of those named. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

In this Monday, Nov. 10, 2014, file photo, Neera Tanden, president of Center for American Progress, speaks during an introduction for New Start New Jersey at NJIT in Newark, N.J. President-elect Joe Biden is expected to name several of his most senior economic advisers in the coming days. Tanden could be one of those named. (AP Photo/Mel Evans, File)

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden smiles as he puts on his face mask after speaking to media in Wilmington, Del., on Sept. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Jill Biden moves her husband, Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, back from members of the media as he speaks outside his campaign plane in New Castle, Del., on Oct. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

President Donald Trump, returning from a campaign rally in Tulsa, Okla., walks across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington after stepping off the Marine One helicopter, early Sunday, June 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

In this Nov. 4, 2018, file photo, then-Georgia Republican gubernatorial candidate Brian Kemp, left, walks with President Donald Trump as Trump arrives for a rally in Macon , Ga. President Trump said Sunday, Nov. 29, 2020 he was “ashamed” for endorsing the Republican governor of Georgia after he lost in the state to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump said on Fox News that Gov. Brian Kemp has “done absolutely nothing” to question the state’s results.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris arrive at an event to introduce their nominees and appointees to economic policy posts at The Queen theater, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President-elect Joe Biden (all times local):

1:35 p.m.

Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen is describing the economic crisis brought on by the COVID pandemic as an “American tragedy” and warning that without quick action to address it, the damage will get worse.

Introducing herself during a Joe Biden transition event where the president-elect unveiled his economic team, Yellen spoke about the “historic crises” of the pandemic and the economic fallout resulting from it, as well as the “disproportionate impact” it has had on “the most vulnerable among us.”

Speaking about a pandemic that has cost 268,000 American lives, Yellen referenced the “lost lives, lost jobs” and struggles Americans face “to put food on the table and pay bills and rent.”

She went on to say that “it’s essential that we move with urgency” because “inaction will produce a self-reinforcing downturn causing yet more devastation.” She pledged to Americans that the Treasury would be “an institution that wakes up every morning thinking about you.”

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HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PRESIDENT-ELECT JOE BIDEN'S TRANSITION TO THE WHITE HOUSE:

President-elect Joe Biden is considering former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, a substantial and somewhat divisive figure in Democratic Party politics, to serve as his transportation secretary.

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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

1:25 p.m.

President-elect Joe Biden says his economic team is “first rate” and will help build an economy that works for all Americans.

Biden introduced key members of the team Tuesday in Delaware, including former Fed chair Janet Yellen to become Treasury secretary. Biden described Yellen as one of the “most important economic thinkers of our time.”

She would be the first female Treasury secretary if confirmed by the Senate.

Biden also introduced Neera Tanden as his choice to run the White House budget office. Tanden’s nomination, however, has encountered early disapproval from some Senate Republicans, who will vote on her nomination.

Biden also named his chair and members of the Council of Economic Advisers. He says the CEA chair will serve in the Cabinet. Biden also named a deputy for Yellen.

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1:15 p.m.

Joe Biden is calling on Congress to pass a “robust package for relief” to address the economic and public health crisis brought on by the COVID pandemic.

The president-elect made the comments introducing his economic team in Wilmington, Delaware, on Tuesday. Congressional leaders have been locked in a stalemate over a COVID relief package, with Democrats and Republicans unable to agree on the price tag or content of a potential bill, though a team of bipartisan lawmakers released their own compromise legislation on Tuesday.

Biden said, however, any package passed during the lame duck session of Congress would be “at best just a start” and that his team is already working on his own proposal for the new Congress “to address the multiple crises we’re facing.” He said the team of economic advisers he announced Tuesday would play a “critical role” in shaping the Biden administration’s plan to revive the economy.

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1:10 p.m.

Joe Biden is wearing a boot publicly for the first time, after fracturing his foot while playing with one of his dogs over the weekend.

The president-elect wore the boot at an event where he introduced his economic team Tuesday afternoon, walking with no obvious limp onto the stage. His doctor said Sunday that he suffered small fractures to his right foot from the incident and would likely have to wear a walking boot “for several weeks.”

Arriving to the event, Biden pointed to the boot and raised his leg as if to show it off. He walked gingerly, telling reporters his foot was “good.” The event was set up with chairs and tables, allowing Biden to sit when he wasn’t speaking before a podium in the center of the stage._