Which Goldman Stooge Will Replace Treasury Secretary Geithner?

What if the answer is "none of the above"? For the first time in millennia, it appears that the Treasury Secretary might (just might) come from somewhere other than Goldman Sachs GS. The history of ties between governments, in particular the Treasury Department, and Goldman Sachs goes back decades. According to the Huffington Post, you can go as far back as World War II to find the connections, when Goldman's Sidney Weinberg served as vice-chair for FDR's War Production Board during the war. More recently, we've seen Robert Rubin (Clinton), Hank Paulson (Bush) and now Geithner (Obama), all of whom came from Goldman Sachs and served as Secretary of the Treasury. Intermingled in there were John Snow, Lawrence Summers, and Paul O'Neill (this Paul O'Neill, not that one). Geithner has been rumored to be replaced since, well, his first day on the job. He's got extreme political baggage, particularly surrounding his role in handing over taxpayer money to former colleagues as part of the government's bailout programs. He's also got a look in his eye that suggests the average person might like to pimp-slap him, should they see him in a bar. The top candidate to replace Timmy, according to some, is former New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine...who just happens to have a background at Goldman Sachs. At least Corzine, if he is the pick, isn't currently at Goldman. He is, instead, the CEO of the ironically named MF Global Holdings MF. Then again, Corzine and Obama aren't political allies (Corzine supported Hillary Clinton) and Obama might go for someone closer to his inner circle. Then again, this is Obama we're talking about; he's as likely to pick an opponent or even a Republican as he is to pick an actual progressive, liberal, or even moderate Democrat for the job. Who else might be in play for the Treasury job? The name I keep hearing is Jamie Dimon. Dimon is the CEO of JP Morgan Chase JPM and served on the Board of Directors of the New York Federal Reserve. Dimon has received praise in the past from President Obama, who reportedly considered Dimon for the job when it went to Geithner. "You know, keep in mind, though there are a lot of banks that are actually pretty well managed, JPMorgan being a good example, Jamie Dimon, the CEO there, I don't think should be punished for doing a pretty good job managing an enormous portfolio," Obama said. Roger Altman is another name that pops up a lot in message boards and in rumors, primarily because his background already includes a stint in the Treasury Department. Altman was United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury under Bill Clinton, and has a strong background in investments and finance. He's also a member of the steering committee of the Bilderberg Group, for you conspiracy theorists out there. My personal choice for the job would be investment guru Warren Buffett. Buffett is constantly bullish on America, almost always makes the right investments (showing he knows what he's doing) and would offer a more center-left point of view to the President's Cabinet. He's respected across the world and would probably take the job if offered, despite the financial cost to himself to do so. If the President really wanted to fire up the left, he could nominate former Labor Secretary Robert Reich. Reich has served presidents from both parties. He worked for President Ford and President Carter, and later served as Secretary of Labor for President Clinton. Reich has a strong economics background and would bring some balance to the heavily Wall-Street tilted department. If the next Treasury Secretary is going to be a political figurehead, rather than a policy wonk, Obama might turn toward the current government for a replacement. One name I like is retiring Senator Herbert Kohl of Wisconsin. He is the owner of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks, helped build Kohl's into a giant, is a noted philanthropist and, with a Harvard MBA, might actually know what he's doing. Odds are he means it when he says he is retiring; then again, if the President calls, you probably answer that call. Do you have any suggestions for who the next Treasury Secretary should be? Post them in the comments below. I'm curious to see who our readers like for the job.