Jon Corzine
The Democratic governor of New Jersey would probably want the job, if for personal reasons alone. Corzine used to be the head of investment bank Goldman Sachs, before he was ousted while on vacation with his family in Telluride, Colorado, in a coup primary led by current Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. Corzine may also relish the idea of coming in and cleaning up what many think has been a botched job by Paulson, who was slow to react to the crisis, and then let Lehman Brothers fail — a move that many now think was a costly mistake.
Having spent time as a Senator, also from New Jersey, Corzine has experience in the challenge of consensus building in Washington, He knows Wall Street too, and understands many of the complex mortgage securities that got us into this mess. But all this experience may prove a liability for Corzine because Obama is probably going to continue to push this message of change. Someone heavily associated with both Wall Street and Washington might not seem like that much of a break from the past, especially someone coming from the same investment bank as Paulson. Mark Weisbrot, the co-director of Washington, D.C.-based Center for Economic Policy Research, thinks anyone with a strong Wall Street background would be a long-shot. "Especially after Paulson, it would look really bad," says Weisbrot. "Wall Street got us into this mess and Obama is going to want to signal this is a new administration."
Another knock against Corzine: During the primary, Corzine was an early and vocal supporter of Senator Hillary Clinton.
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