As the glow of the post-election victory parties wears off, President-elect Barack Obama has little time to waste in picking members of his cabinet given the state of the economy. Reports continue to bubble up that banker-turned-politician Jon Corzine may be top on his list of staffers.
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The Newark Star-Ledger newspaper reported:
Gov. Jon Corzine, a multimillionaire and former Wall Street chief executive, is being actively vetted by the Obama transition team as a possible candidate for Treasury secretary in the new administration, two New Jersey Democrats familiar with the process said early this morning.
Earlier in the week The Deal's editor in chief Robert Teitelman had suggested some of the pluses and negatives of picking the former Goldman, Sachs & Co. chief:
Corzine seems to have it all: Democratic credentials, political and administrative experience and high-level financial chops. What would hold him back, besides the fact that he's engaged in trying to salvage the Garden State's miserable -- and worsening -- fiscal mess?
However, if you look at the comments on the Star-Ledger's story, clearly Corzine, who has been wrestling with New Jersey's fiscal mess, is currently an unpopular governor in a traditionally Democratic state. If Obama proffers a cabinet post, Garden State Democrats might be wise to encourage Corzine to return to Washington, so as to allow another Dem to run next year rather than risk a loss of the statehouse. On the other hand, Corzine would be the third governor in a row to leave before his or her term was up, two to Washington (Christie Todd Whitman, Corzine), and one after a gay affair (Jim McGreevey). And somebody has to try to fix Trenton's finances. - Matthew Wurtzel
See story from The Star-Ledger
See earlier story from Dealscape
Matthew Wurtzel is the editor of Dealscape.
