Snow's Status Remains Uncertain

White House Is Noncommittal on Secretary's Position

Bush has not publicly backed Treasury Secretary John W. Snow.

Treasury Secretary John W. Snow woke up yesterday and read in a major newspaper for the second Monday in a row that President Bush has decided to replace him, but the former railroad executive still had not gotten the word directly from the White House.

White House officials have not been pushing the story on reporters but they have done nothing to head off the accounts, leaving one of the most powerful Cabinet secretaries in an awkward situation. Bush's aides have been telling Snow that they appreciate his work and that they are sorry about all the speculation, while fueling it with tepid endorsements and silence from the president.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan, asked at his afternoon briefing about a report in the New York Times that a firm decision had been made to replace Snow as soon as Bush could settle on a successor, told reporters that officials "will keep you posted when we have things to announce."

"I appreciate your question," McClellan said. "I know that this is all part of the continuing Washington, D.C., speculation game. It's a game that I'm not going to get into playing, as I've told you from this podium. We appreciate the great job that Secretary Snow is doing. He's an outstanding member of this team."

Seven days earlier, responding to a similar report in The Washington Post, McClellan said, "That's part of the Washington, D.C., speculation game. I would point out that Secretary Snow has been a valuable member of the president's team. . . . We appreciate all that he is doing."

A senior administration official maintained that the president has not made a decision. "This is precisely why we don't talk about personnel issues," the official said.

Officials who have discussed the matter with West Wing aides said Snow, 65, is regarded as having done everything the White House has asked him to do, including heavy travel to swing states and marathon radio interviews. But the officials said Bush feels he needs a fresh economic team to sell voters and Congress on his ambitious plans for Social Security and a tax-code revision.

Several administration officials said they do not believe Snow can be allowed to twist in the wind much longer and that an announcement is likely soon.

Some officials said the silence apparently is an effort to avoid the way Snow's predecessor, Paul H. O'Neill, was handled. O'Neill felt he received assurances from the White House, then was fired and left bitterly. Snow, a former chairman of CSX Corp., took office in February 2003.

Snow was at the White House yesterday for two meetings about Bush's plans to add private accounts to Social Security. His spokesman, Rob Nichols, peppered with questions about the matter at his weekly media briefing, said, "As a matter of policy, I don't read out or announce conversations between the secretary and the president."

Nichols added that Snow "views his service to the president as an honor and a privilege, and he is proud of his role in helping the president strengthen the economy."

Also yesterday, the White House began signaling how Bush will frame his campaign to persuade Congress to make it possible for younger workers to invest some of their Social Security taxes in stocks and bonds. The White House has not provided an estimate for the cost of converting to the new system, but outsiders put the figure at $1 trillion to $2 trillion over 10 years.

McClellan acknowledged that the conversion would be paid for partly with debt, which he referred to as "up-front transition financing." McClellan said Bush opposes raising taxes to pay for the change.

"There will be some up-front transition financing that will be needed to move toward a better system that will allow younger workers to invest a small portion of their own money into personal savings accounts," McClellan said.

The White House argues that it would cost more to leave Social Security as it is. "The current system is simply unsustainable," McClellan said. "It will lead to either massive tax increases or massive benefit cuts for younger workers."

Bush opened his campaign to promote Social Security legislation by meeting with congressional leaders -- eight Democrats and eight Republicans. Aides said he is willing to work with Congress on his policy's timing and content. Many Republicans fear the plan is politically risky, and many Democrats contend that it is unaffordable or could cause people to lose retirement funds because of market fluctuations.

The Cabinet Room meeting lasted a little more than the scheduled one hour and started with remarks from Bush, who called it "the beginning of what we hope will be a bipartisan effort to get something done," according to aides. Using charts on a big easel, two White House economic officials gave a presentation about the problems facing Social Security over the next 75 years. Then leaders from both parties offered differing views during a discussion period.

House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) attended the meeting and said he is skeptical about Bush's overture. "The president is always gracious, and says he is open to our ideas and wants to work with us," he said. But with the exception of the No Child Left Behind education measure, he said, "that has not happened in four years."