Bush to Nominate Two Democrats to the Commission

The White House announced that it would nominate the two Democrats submitted by Harry Reid, Luis Aguilar and  Elisse Walter to the Securities and Exchange Commission.  Approval by the Senate will bring the Commission up to its full complement of 5.

The appointments will have broad ramifications.  In addition to the presence of two moderate voices on the Commission (offsetting the votes of Casey and Atkins), Commissioner Atkins is scheduled to step down this summer.  He could wait until a successor is confirmed but to the extent he leaves on time, the Commission will be divided 2-2, with the Democrats able to prevent any significant changes by the current administration.  In addition, Chairman Cox will likely step down before the 2008 elections, making way for the new president to appoint a new chairman.  At that point, the Commission will either have a democratic majority (if Commissioner Atkins steps down) or the Commission will be evenly divided, 2-2.

By the way, if a Democrat is elected to the White House, the ideal candidate for Chairman?  Harvey Goldschmid, a former general counsel, commissioner, and now a professor at Columbia.  He has the intellect, force of personality and support within the shareholder community for the position.