He has always been Bob Rubin's partner in many, many ways, working with him to balance the budget, to strengthen Social Security, to reform the IRS, to build a stronger economy at home and abroad. As deputy secretary, Summers was key in the bailout of Mexico, IRS reform and, most recently, he's been Treasury's chief trouble-shooter on the Asian economic crisis. Yet some Republicans are concerned that Summers is more liberal than his centrist, market-oriented boss. He is also considered to be an intense person who is sometimes described as arrogant. In recent months, Rubin and other top administration officials have worked hard to build Summers' public image.
Summers comes from academia.
He was Nathaniel Ropes Professor of Political Economy at Harvard University from 1987 until 1993. He was named a professor of economics at Harvard in 1983, the youngest tenured professor in the University's history at age 28. Summers joined the Clinton Administration in 1993 as the Treasury undersecretary for international affairs after serving at the World Bank as the vice president of development economics and chief economist. CNN's Kathleen Koch and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Inc. All Rights Reserved.