Treasury chief Paulson on verge of historic new powers

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Source: Christian Science Monitor

Washington - In recent weeks Henry Paulson Jr. has become one of the most famous and, perhaps, consequential US Treasury secretaries since Alexander Hamilton assumed the office on Sept. 11, 1789.

Secretary Paulson is not the sole architect of the Bush administration's bailout strategy for the US economy, of course. By all accounts he is part of a troika of top policymakers with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and New York Fed Chief Timothy Geithner.

But as the public face and dealmaker of the plan, Paulson is the one most in the spotlight. Moreover, bailout legislation submitted to Congress by the White House over the weekend would transform Paulson's office into that of temporary overseer of America's entire financial system.

This may not be the role that former Goldman Sachs head Paulson envisioned when he signed on as President Bush's third Treasury chief.

"But he has to do this. He has no choice," says Peter Morici, a business professor at the University of Maryland and the former chief economist at the US International Trade Commission.

The proposed expanded powers for the Treasury secretary are one aspect of the Bush bailout plan that has drawn criticism from Democratic members of Congress.

Under the proposal, the United States Treasury would have the power to buy virtually any financial instrument from any institution, as a means to relieve it of bad assets and pump credit back into the economy. New Treasury staff would help manage this program, although the administration foresees contracting with private firms to manage its new asset holdings.
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The primary role of the Treasury is financing the operations of the US government, and that is helped if the department head understands the key role confidence and capital flows play in financial markets, says Mr. Bartlett.

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