Obama taps three for Treasury posts

WASHINGTON, March 8 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama appointed three people to top Treasury Department posts Sunday, replacing three nominees who stepped down last week.

In a statement released by the White House, Obama tapped David Cohen as assistant secretary overseeing efforts to fight terrorist financing, Alan Krueger as assistant secretary for economic policy and Kim Wallace as assistant secretary for legislative affairs.

All three had been serving as counselors to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, the statement said.

The trio's nominations come less than a week after three other Treasury nominees, including Obama's picks for deputy and undersecretary of international affairs, pulled out as Geithner directed the response to the gravest financial crisis the country has faced since the Great Depression, the Washington publication The Hill reported.