Geithner gets needed help with Treasury nominations

After some weeks of running the Treasury Department virtually by himself, Secretary Tim Geithner will get some help, thanks to appointments announced Sunday by President Obama.

Obama nominated David S. Cohen to be Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Terrorist Financing, Alan B. Krueger as Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Economic Policy, and Kim N. Wallace as Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Legislative Affairs.

The Treasury Department has been notably understaffed amidst Geithner and the administration’s work to stabilize the U.S. financial industry.

None of the 17 deputy secretaries of the Treasury have been named, leading former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker to tell the London Daily Telegraph that the situation is “shameful.”

Each of the nominees is currently serving as a Counselor to the Secretary of Treasury.

Cohen, Krueger, and Wallace have been working as informal counselors to Geithner, the White House said, making them much like the fellow expected nominees at Treasury who’ve not yet been confirmed to their positions.

“With the leadership of these accomplished individuals and our whole economic team, I am absolutely confident that we will turn around this economy and seize this opportunity to secure a more prosperous future,” Obama said in a statement.