Treasury's Herbert Allison Becomes Latest Economic Official To Go

When Herbert Allison was named to oversee the government's $700 billion bank bailout in 2008, Scott Talbott, chief lobbyist for the Financial Services Roundtable, hailed him for his "wealth of experience with buying, selling, protecting, and managing assets to protect the taxpayer investment and strengthen the economy." That may have been true, but it looks like it wasn't enough to prolong his career in government service.

According to CNBC, Allison, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Stability, is the latest member of the Obama economic to leave ahead of what many expect to be crushing losses for the Democrats in November. Lawrence Summers tendered his resignation as chairman of National Economic Council yesterday, saying that he wanted to return to Harvard University where he had previously been president. Office of Management and Budget Peter Orzag and Christina Romer, chair of the Council of Economic Advisors, have also recently quit. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is the last member of President Barack Obama's cadre of economic experts left and his tenure seems to be on increasingly shaky ground.

Allison came to Treasury after serving as Chief Executive of Fannie Mae. Before that, he was Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of TIAA-CREF. Allison began his career at Merrill Lynch, where he eventually became President, Chief Operating Officer and a member of the Board.

Some turnover in administrations is common. The shear number of changes among the economists indicate that some change is on the horizon. Exactly what is hard to say but the poll numbers leave little doubt that most Americans are as worried as ever about their financial futures.

According to Gallup report, "Even as Wall Street rallies on the National Bureau of Economic Research announcement that the recession ended in June 2009, Gallup finds -- more than a year later -- that 88% of Americans believe now is a bad time to find a quality job."