Obama Said to Name Jack Lew to Replace Geithner at Treasury

[Little Star]

Bloomberg.com
By Hans Nichols
Jan 9, 2013 10:03 AM ET

Obama Said to Name Lew Tomorrow to Replace Geithner

President Barack Obama plans to name White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew tomorrow as his choice for Treasury secretary, replacing Timothy F. Geithner, a person familiar with the process said.

Lew, 57, who also has served as director of the Office of Management and Budget, has been offered the Treasury post by Obama, according to the person, who asked for anonymity to discuss personnel matters.

Geithner, 51, the only remaining member of Obama’s original economic team, has told White House officials he doesn’t’ want to serve in a second term and intends to leave the job by the end of the month.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-09/obama-said-to-name-lew-tomorrow-as-choice-to-replace-geithner.html

I don't know much about Lew. Is this a good pick?

[Proud Public Servant]

1. He seems to be good at government

for the most part, although he was one of the architects of the abomination that came to be known as Hillarycare. He did at good job at State (where I work); I'm not qualified to pass judgment on his tenure at OMB or as Chief of Staff, but he doesn't seem to have screwed anything up.

However, as Mother Jones reminded us, he's also done time on Wall Street, where he was head of a "unit of Citigroup that made money by betting against the housing market as it prepared to implode" (http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2012/01/flashback-lews-time-citi-and-other-disappointments). So he's no white knight.

[OKNancy]

2. Spent 2-3 years at Citi out of his whole working life

Otherwise he has some good liberal credentials. I did read an article last week that "Wall Street" doesn't like the pick.