Whatever his merits as a potential treasury secretary, Jack Lew is an embarrassment to penmanship and about to become a national poster boy for its decline. If President Obama announces his appointment today, as expected, Lew’s illegible signature may soon become one of the most printed in the world, gracing the lower right-hand corner of the billions of American banknotes produced every year.
Lew, who is currently Obama’s chief of staff, may be able to come up with a cleaner version of his signature, which in samples online is more evocative of the marks once used by illiterates to sign contracts than John Hancock’s regal scrawl. There is precedent: While the outgoing secretary, Timothy Geithner, has a normal signature that is far more legible than Lew’s, Geithner still produced a cleaned-up version for use on currency.
Comments
So, is bad penmanship going to be the runaway issue for putting a hold on the nomination? And where are all the comments?
I don't care if Lew can write elegantly in cursive or not. What I care about is that a loyal political operative with little financial experience has been nominated to head the U.S. Treasury. We live in a world where international currency wars and national budget deficits are huge issues. Lew is not prepared to handle these momentous issues. Why not simply appoint Valerie Jarrett to head the Treasury?
Jack Lew a political operative? Lacking financial experience? Do you know who this guy is? He's been involved in the budgetary process for almost his entire life. Worked at Citigroup. You don't like him, okay that's legit. But "Ozark" apparently doesn't know anything about him.
Sorry, attaturk, but many members of Congress "have been involved in the budgetary process" for decades and yet they know very little about international finance, national debt and financing of budget deficits. What they know is how to insert loopholes into the tax code and earmarks into appropriations bills. Do you understand the difference?
In years past illiterate people used an "X" for their signature. Some might argue that Jack Lew's series of loops is an improvement on the "X." Sarcasm aside, there are good reasons for being able to write (not print) one's name legibly--for example to sign nominating papers for the senatorial candidate of your choice (illegible signatures are often not counted). I've known illiterate (in any language) immigrants to the U.S.A. who have taken the time to learn to write their names in a somewhat legible manner. I expect no less from a potential treasury secretary.