For Treasury Secretary, get a banker
The American Spectator has a piece today saying that President Bush wants to replace John Snow at Treasury. Snow was formerly CEO of CSX, and he replaced the unfortunate Paul O’Neill, who had been CEO of Alcoa. Snow seems like a solid guy, but…
Ever since the disastrous appointment by Jimmy Carter of Textron CEO G. William Miller to both the Fed and Treasury, one thing should have been clear: put bankers in the jobs that are about money. Robert Rubin was competent, reassured the market, and reined in the campaign promise excesses of the Clinton administration. An incompetent Treasury Secretary can, on the other hand, wreak havoc upon the markets. When the job calls for a competent, respected banker — get a banker.