Jacob Lew
Sen. Bernie SandersWASHINGTON -
The U.S. Senate has confirmed Jacob Lew to be the new treasury secretary. But the president's nominee did not get the vote of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
The vote was 71-26 to support Lew, who most recently served as President Barack Obama's chief of staff and previously worked in the budget offices for both Obama and former President Bill Clinton. But he also worked at a big investment bank during the financial collapse of 2008.
Sanders says the nation needs a treasury secretary who is not from Wall Street.
"When we have the most unequal distribution of wealth and income since the Great Depression, we need a secretary of the treasury who is willing to stand up for working families; be prepared to take on Wall Street," said Sanders, I-Vermont.
Lew takes over for Timothy Geithner, another Wall Street insider, who completed a tumultuous four-year term leading the administration's response to the recession.
