Treasury Department Deputy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman will move over to the Department of Energy, replacing Secretary Spencer Abraham, President Bush said Friday. While lacking an energy background, Bodman has been praised for his management abilities.

Bodman “has shown himself to be a problem solver who knows how to set goals and knows how to reach them,” the president said at an announcement ceremony in the Roosevelt Room. Bush said priorities for the Energy Department are to “develop and deploy the latest technology to provide a new generation of cleaner and more efficient energy sources” and to “promote strong conservation measures.”

“We will bring greater certainty of cost and supply and that certainty is essential to economic growth and job creation,” he said. The president has pledged to renew his push for energy legislation, which has failed to make it through the Congress since it was unveiled four years ago.

Commenting on the appointment, Senate Energy & Natural Resources Chairman Pete V. Domenici praised Bodman, saying “he is articulate and brings a broad and impressive set of skills to the Department of Energy. His management experience will be a boon to the department. His financial expertise will be a tremendous asset in accurately assessing the economic impact of energy policy and crafting that policy in an environment of fiscal restraint.”

Domenici said he was “particularly pleased with his technical training and outstanding track record at MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology]. He understands the critical role science, research and advanced technologies will play in meeting our energy challenges.”

Earlier in the week the president said that four other Cabinet members would be staying on for his second term: Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, Interior Secretary Gale Norton, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson and Labor Secretary Elaine Chao. Also, Treasury Secretary John Snow will remain in his post. The president still must fill the top job at the Health and Human Services Department.

President Bush has let nine out of 15 Cabinet members go, a high rate of turnover compared to other recent presidents. The usual practice when a president is re-elected is for all Cabinet members to tender their resignations, allowing the president to accept or decline the resignations. Given the hard-fought election and the campaign supporters to be rewarded, Washington observers had expected a number of changes.

Born in 1938 in Chicago, Bodman graduated in 1961 with a B.S. in chemical engineering from Cornell University. In 1965, he completed his ScD at MIT, and for the next six years served as an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at MIT and as Technical Director of the American Research and Development Corp., a pioneer venture capital firm.

From there, Bodman went to Fidelity Venture Associates, a division of the Fidelity Investments. In 1983 he was named president and COO of Fidelity Investments and a director of the Fidelity Group of Mutual Funds. In 1987, he joined Cabot Corp., a Boston-based company with global business activities in specialty chemicals and materials, where he served as chairman, CEO, and a director. He had been a deputy secretary at the Commerce Dept. before moving to Treasury.

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