Where's the "Change"?
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.
Enlarge image
President Barack Obama walks with White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew on his way to board Marine One. Photographer: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
5:21
Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Timothy Bitsberger, a managing director at BNP Paribas and a former assistant secretary for financial markets at the U.S. Treasury, talks about the possibility of White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew becoming the next Treasury secretary. Bitsberger, speaking with Betty Liu on Bloomberg Television's "In the Loop," also discusses U.S. debt ceiling negotiations and outlook for leadership at the Federal Reserve. (Source: Bloomberg)
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.
Lew’s nomination as Treasury secretary is subject to confirmation by the Senate.
The next Treasury secretary will play a leading role in working with Congress to raise the government’s $16.4 trillion debt ceiling. The U.S. reached the statutory limit on Dec. 31, and the Treasury Department began using extraordinary measures to finance the government. It will exhaust that avenue as early as mid-February, the Congressional Budget Office says.