This ‘retirement nerd’ at the uber-liberal New School teamed with Trump’s economy guru to reinvent the 401(k)

Last week, President Donald Trump announced his plan to offer the 54 million American workers who do not have employer-sponsored retirement plans the same retirement savings plan given to federal workers that would match workers’ contributions up to $1,000 a year. The policy is just one of many on the president’s new affordability agenda and has the potential to be far-reaching and deeply impactful for low-income Americans. 

The plan is the perhaps unlikely brainchild of National Economic Council chief Kevin Hassett and a progressive economist, The New School professor Teresa Ghilarducci. 

While they may seem like an odd pairing, both Hassett and Ghilarducci share a passion for and deep concern about the future of retirement, she told Fortune. Americans are not saving enough for a comfortable retirement, and some are returning to work because they can’t afford not to.

A self-described “retirement nerd...