"Among the names being bandied around for a possible successor to Energy Secretary Steven Chu, we’re hearing two a bit louder of late: former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and John Podesta, founder of the Center for American Progress.

Chu hasn’t officially announced his departure, but it is widely expected that he’ll be leaving the administration before too long. It’s thought that Podesta, who was chief of staff to former President Bill Clinton and co-chaired President Obama’s transition team, would bring a savvier political sense to the job than did Chu, whose background was as a lauded (as in Nobel Prize-winning) academic. Ritter has also been mentioned as a candidate to head up the Interior Department, if and when Secretary Ken Salazar departs."

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In The Loop: Names swirl for possible Energy, EPA jobs; officials out at the SEC and Patent office (The Washington Post 11/26)

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