I guess his credibility on economics isn't under discussion
White House Backing Bolsters Snow's Credibility
Wed Dec 8, 2004 07:55 PM ET
By Glenn Somerville
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House's tardy backing for Treasury Secretary John Snow, whose job future seemed in peril until Wednesday, may restore some lost luster to the post of top U.S. economic spokesman, analysts said.
But an untidy situation that was allowed to fester over the past week after a newspaper report quoted an unnamed White House official saying Snow could stay "provided it is not very long" has left bruises that will take time to fade.
The unheralded mid-afternoon announcement that Bush "asked Secretary Snow to continue serving in his second term" caught financial markets off guard, since speculation already had turned to who would replace him at Treasury's helm.
"I think there's going to be some lingering questions about how much confidence he generates among the Bush inner circle, because somebody was leaking those stories," said Greg Valliere, chief strategist with Stanford Washington Research Group. "I think you'd have to say that he may not enjoy the complete confidence of all of Bush's inner circle."
