Dec. 9, 2002

President Bush has nominated railroad executive and former government transportation official John Snow as Treasury secretary to replace Paul O'Neill. O'Neill and Senior White House Economic Advisor Lawrence Lindsey submitted their resignations Friday, at the request of the Bush administration, sources said.

Announcing the selection December 9, Bush said Snow will be a key advisor on economic growth, new job creation and international trade.

Appearing at the announcement with Bush, Snow said he will work closely with other countries "to build and maintain a prosperous, growing and stable global economy" and prosecute the war on terror.

Snow is chairman, president and chief executive officer of CSX Corporation, which operates the largest rail freight network in the eastern United States. CSX also links with freight transporters in Mexico and Canada and operates freight ocean liners between the United States, Guam and Puerto Rico. The company operates freight terminals in Hong Kong, China, Australia, Europe, Russia and Latin America, according to CSX's Web site.

Snow was deputy under secretary of transportation in the Ford administration and was instrumental formulating policy leading to economic deregulation of the rail, truck and aviation industries, according to a White House statement. He has been active in the Business Roundtable, an association of corporate chief executive officers and in that position played a leadership role in supporting passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the statement said.

Snow is currently co-chairman of the Conference Board Commission on Public Trust and Private Enterprise. He served as co-chairman of the National Commission on Financial Institution Reform, Recovery and Enforcement that made recommendations following the savings and loan crisis of the early 1990s, according to the statement. In 2001, he was awarded the Marco Polo Award, the highest honor given to a foreign business leader by the U.S.-China Foundation for International Exchanges, the statement said. Snow holds a doctorate in economics and a law degree.

Bush is expected to nominate investment banker Stephen Friedman as director of the National Economic Council, replacing Lawrence Lindsey.

Both the positions of treasury secretary and economic advisor require Senate confirmation.