US President George W. Bush unveiled a new economic lineup yesterday, bringing CSX Corp chairman John Snow in as Treasury secretary in a drive to pump up the economy before his 2004 re-election bid.
Bush is expected to name Stephen Friedman, who served as co-chairman of Goldman Sachs with former Treasury secretary Robert Rubin, to head the White House National Economic Council, rounding out a team to champion a new round of tax cuts aimed at boosting business investment and increasing job growth.
Friedman's appointment is expected today at the earliest as the White House scrambles to complete extensive background checks, sources familiar with the decision said.
Bush abruptly forced out top White House economic adviser Lawrence Lindsey and Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill only days earlier in what one Republican insider dubbed "the Friday morning massacre."
Snow, 63, is chairman, president and chief executive of CSX, the biggest rail operator in the eastern US.
An economist and lawyer, Snow brings Washington experience dating back to the Gerald Ford administration, when he served stints as assistant secretary and general counsel at the Transportation Department.
At the helm of CSX, Snow was heavily involved in the US$10 billion deal that saw CSX and rival Norfolk Southern Corp carve up Conrail, once the dominant force in the Northeast, in a long and bitter contest.
Snow taught economics at the University of Virginia and served as chairman of the influential Business Roundtable, which represents many of the nation's largest corporations in Washington.
Snow has been particularly outspoken on the hot-button issue of corporate responsibility following scandals at Enron Corp and other major US companies. As co-chairman of a Conference Board commission on corporate governance, Snow has argued for widespread reforms in the way executive compensation is determined.
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