Obama Selects Acting Treasury Secretary
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}President-elect Barack Obama has tapped Stuart Levey, the head of the Treasury Department's anti-terrorism operation, to fill in as acting secretary of the department until a permanent successor to Henry Paulson is confirmed.
Levey is the department's undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. He will serve as secretary, FOX News confirms, while Obama's pick for the job, Timothy Geithner, tries to assure lawmakers that he is fit for the post.
Geithner hit a snag after revelations that Geithner, currently the head of the Federal Reserve's New York regional bank, failed to pay $34,000 in taxes several years ago when he worked for the International Monetary Fund.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Obama on Wednesday labeled the disclosures about Geithner an embarrassment but said it was an "innocent mistake" that should not bar Geithner from the Treasury job.
Geithner still has strong bipartisan backing in the Senate, but the disclosure has delayed his confirmation hearing, which opens the possibility that opposition to the nomination could build.
Levey came to Treasury in 2004 from the Justice Department where he had dealt with anti-terrorism efforts.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}FOX News' Peter Barnes and The Associated Press contributed to this report.