WASHINGTON—White House Chief of Staff Jacob Lew has been officially nominated as U.S. Treasury secretary, replacing Timothy Geithner after his tough four-year term. Lew’s nomination comes amid substantial leadership changes as President Barack Obama forges a second-term cabinet.
In announcing Lew’s nomination, President Obama thanked outgoing Secretary Geithner for his outstanding service, describing the dire state of the U.S. economy at Geithner’s appointment four years prior and the achievements gained since.
The president’s remarks were received in the East Room of the White House Thursday.
“The fact is, while a lot of work remains, especially to rebuild a strong middle class and offer working folks new pathways to rise into the middle class, our economy is better positioned for tomorrow than most of those other countries hit by the financial crisis,” he said during remarks made in the White House Thursday.
Obama also said that Geithner would be missed and would “go down as one of our finest Secretaries of the Treasury.”
Lew’s nomination was “bittersweet,” according to Obama, not only because Geithner is leaving, but also because Lew will no longer be in the White House as chief of staff.
“I trust his judgment. I value his friendship. I know very few people with greater integrity,” Obama said, adding, “But my loss will be the nation’s gain.”
Lew has been criticized for being too close to the president, threatening his ability to make decisions that may run contrary to White House expectations.
“In an environment in which Congress fosters a deep resentment of President Obama that often makes the relationship unworkable, it is a challenge,” said Dr. John Hudak, governance fellow with the D.C. think-tank the Brookings Institution. “Mr. Lew needs to demonstrate to Congress that he is not simply a puppet of the White House, but someone willing to engage all of the interested stakeholders and political actors.”
New York City-born Lew could also be the right man at the right time for Obama, his nomination coming as lawmakers head into a contentious fiscal session with debt-ceiling negotiations looming and with the continuing threat of sequestration, which has been postponed until March 1.
As former director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) during two presidencies, once for Obama and once for Bill Clinton, Lew brings not only an understanding of the machinations of Congress, the egos involved, and the parameters of presidential power, but also of fiscal issues.
