The Flurry Over John Snow

Before President Bush finally decided to keep Treasury Secretary John Snow as the leader of his second-term economic team last week, the White House's list of possible replacements had multiplied. According to a senior Administration official, Bush was considering erstwhile presidential candidate and publisher of Forbes magazine Steve Forbes, and former Texas Senator Phil Gramm. The White House also looked at a couple of Wall Street types.

From the outset, however, the President said of Snow, "I'm not predisposed towards replacing him," the Administration official told TIME. Behind the scenes, Bush had insisted on a careful re-evaluation of every Cabinet member. A number of first-termers were planning to leave of their own accord, whereas others, the Administration official said, were discreetly pushed. In Snow's case, the White House chose to take its time. Consideration was given to Gramm and Forbes. But as the Administration official put it, "For every good thing they brought to the table, there was something offsetting." As a maverick tax cutter, Forbes was seen as a bad fit to lead Bush's team of loyalists. And Gramm, never well liked on Capitol Hill despite his 18 years in the Senate, appeared an unlikely salesman in Congress for the President's big tax- and Social Security-- reform plans.

That left Snow, former CEO of railroad company CSX, the last man standing. Yet his triumph in the Cabinet sweepstakes could soon be tested. This week the White House will stage a two-day conference designed to highlight Bush's ambitious second-term domestic plans. To sell that package, Snow will need even more support from Bush, especially against the current backdrop of sluggish job growth, a slumping dollar, and record trade and fiscal deficits. --By Adam Zagorin and James Carney