Newport Beach Republican Congressman Christopher Cox was tapped by President Bush Thursday to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Cox would replace William Donaldson, who said on Wednesday he plans to step down June 30. Cox needs Senate approval for the job.
If approved, the position would be Cox’s first big administration post since the Reagan administration, though he’s been considered for several before.
He was blocked by California Sen. Barbara Boxer for a federal judgeship in 2001.
Cox, Orange County’s most influential lawmaker in Washington, easily won a ninth term in the House of Representatives last fall.
“In the years ahead, Chris will vigorously enforce the rules and laws that guarantee honesty and transparency in our markets and corporate boardrooms,” Bush said Thursday.
He chairs the powerful House Homeland Security Committee and also sits on House Energy and Commerce Committee telecommunications and energy/air quality subcommittees.
Cox worked closely with the Navy on the sale of land for the Great Park at El Toro.
His nomination likely will be cheered by executives, who’ve come under increased SEC scrutiny after corporate scandals and the Sarbanes-Oxley accounting reform law.
“I think by any measure he is an outstanding individual,” Dwight Decker, chief executive of Newport Beach-based Conexant Systems Inc. said of Cox. “I also see him as far from a polarizing figure.”
Donaldson was known for strong SEC enforcement. He pushed through rules governing mutual funds, hedge fund advisers and stock market trading and pricing.
Cox is pro-business and anti-taxes. He recently proposed another permanent tax ban on Internet sales, an issue he’s pushed since 1997. The current moratorium expires in 2007.
A graduate of Harvard Law School, Cox has been in Congress since 1988. He served as a White House counsel to former President Ronald Reagan.
