University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School and Wharton School professor Jay Clayton is under consideration for the position of United States secretary of the treasury, according to Reuters.
Clayton — who is also a 1988 Engineering graduate and 1993 Penn Carey Law graduate — served as the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during 1968 Wharton graduate, former President, and President-elect Donald Trump’s first presidency. During his tenure as the SEC chair, Clayton addressed developments in the economy resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, Brexit, and the digitization of assets.
Clayton was also a member of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets, the Financial Stability Oversight Council, the Financial Stability Board, and the Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions. Prior to entering government, Clayton was a member of the Sullivan & Cromwell law firm’s management committee.
Clayton also serves on the Board of Directors of Apollo Global Management, which is run by Marc Rowan, a 1985 Wharton MBA graduate who currently serves as the chair of the Wharton Board of Advisors. Rowan was vocal in calling for former Penn President Liz Magill’s resignation last fall in an open letter and promised that he would withhold donations from the University until she and former University Board of Trustees Chair Scott Bok stepped down.
Clayton, when nominated for SEC chair by Trump in 2017, was approved by the U.S. Senate by a 61-37 margin.
Clayton previously worked to protect the SEC from Trump’s political controversies by working with Democratic commissioners. Former SEC trial lawyer Richard Hong told Reuters that during Trump’s first term, “the SEC was insulated from the everyday political turmoil” due to Clayton’s leadership.
Reuters reported that Clayton told the presidential transition team that he would be “delighted to serve” in Trump’s second administration.
Yale University professor and previous Trump economic advisor Scott Bessent is another contender for the treasury secretary position. Other candidates include major Trump donor John Paulson, former director of Trump’s National Economic Council Larry Kudlow, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, and Trump transition team co-chair Howard Lutnick.
Trump also recently offered Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) — who brought intense scrutiny onto Magill and Penn during a congressional hearing about antisemitism on college campuses, ultimately leading to Magill’s resignation — the position of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
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