WASHINGTON, D.C. - President-elect Barack Obama has moved with unusual speed to select officials for his administration, and senior Democratic officials say he intends to name Timothy Geithner as his treasury secretary as soon as Monday. | SLIDESHOW: Obama's White House team | Who's in the running for Cabinet? | Obama plan: 2.5M new jobs by 2011

It was not clear when Obama intended to formally unveil any of his other picks for the administration that takes office at the stroke of noon on Jan. 20. One Democrat said John Podesta, a leader of Obama's transition team, had told Senate aides on Friday that Obama hoped for speedy confirmation so the new administration could get to work quickly thereafter.

Word of Geithner's likely selection emerged as New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, in line to become secretary of state, said through a spokesman that discussions were on track for her appointment but no final arrangement had been made.

Obama's choice for attorney general, a third critical post as the president-elect rounds out his top Cabinet echelon, is Eric Holder. He held the No. 2 slot in the Justice Department in President Bill Clinton's administration.

The president-elect plans to announce Geithner's appointment in Chicago on Monday, barring an unforeseen snag in a background check that is nearly complete, said one of the senior officials, both of whom were familiar with the deliberations. He's the president of the New York Federal Reserve.

If nominated and confirmed by the Senate, Geithner, 47, would assume chief responsibility for tackling an economic slowdown and credit crunch that threaten to create the deepest recession in more than a generation. In his current post in New York, he has played a key role in the government's response to the financial crisis and has worked closely with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve.

As a Treasury Department official during the Clinton administration, Geithner (pronounced GITE-ner) dealt with international financial crises and played a major part in negotiating assistance packages for South Korea and Brazil.

Lawrence Summers, a former treasury secretary and one-time Harvard University president, was being considered as an economic adviser. Economic posts also seemed likely for Obama's top two economic advisers during his campaign, Austan Goolsbee and Jason Furman.

Officials said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson had emerged as a likely pick as commerce secretary, although he had hoped to be secretary of state. Like Clinton, he was a rival of Obama's for the Democratic presidential nomination last winter. He dropped out after the early contests, though, and soon threw his support behind the eventual winner.

The officials spoke only on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the anticipated appointments.

The president-elect has largely stayed out of public view since his election on Nov. 4, preferring to work quietly with aides and Vice President-elect Joe Biden in a suite of offices in downtown Chicago.

Obama faces unusual challenges and has moved quickly in assembling his team. Former President George H.W. Bush made his first Cabinet pick the day after his election in 1988, but former President Clinton did not name any members until after Thanksgiving. President George W. Bush's transition was delayed by the contested result in Florida.

While speculation has been rampant about most top-level appointments, there has been relatively little about Obama's choice for defense secretary. His aides encouraged speculation before the election that Robert Gates, who now holds the position, would remain in office for an interim period.

Other Cabinet selections so far include former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota as secretary of health and human services and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, likely to be named as secretary of the Homeland Security Department.

Napolitano was an early supporter of candidate Obama among the ranks of Democratic governors, as was Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas. Sebelius has figured prominently in recent days in speculation as possible secretary of labor.

Additionally, retired Gen. James Jones, a former Marine Corps commandant and NATO commander, was among those under consideration for national security adviser. James Steinberg, an Obama campaign aide who served in Clinton's White House, was another possibility, according to officials.

Obama has repeatedly referred to the economic crisis as the top priority for his new administration.

Geithner held posts in the Treasury Department under three administrations and five secretaries before moving to the New York Fed in 2003. He also held positions at the International Monetary Fund and was employed at the private firm of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

The Dow Jones industrials soared by nearly 500 points late in the day Friday, a sharp rise that coincided with the first reports of Geithner's possible appointment.

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Obama weighs names for top posts

President-elect Barack Obama is weighing an array of Washington insiders and outsiders, including some Republicans, for Cabinet and other top positions, according to Democratic and transition officials. They include:

TREASURY SECRETARY

Timothy Geithner, president of Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

SECRETARY OF STATE

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., former first lady and one-time rival of Obama's for the Democratic presidential nomination.

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Eric Holder, former deputy attorney general.

DEFENSE SECRETARY

Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Former Navy Secretary Richard Danzig.

Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., critic of Iraq war, retiring from Senate.

Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., member of Senate Armed Services Committee.

John Hamre, former deputy defense secretary, now president of Center for Strategic and International Studies.

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY

Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D.

HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY

Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano.

CIA DIRECTOR

John Brennan, former director of the National Counterterrorism Center

NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR

Former Rep. Tim Roemer, D-Ind., and member of the Sept. 11 commission.

Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., who heads the House Homeland Security subcommittee on intelligence.

Don Kerr, No. 2 official in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Jami Miscik, former head of CIA's analytical operations.

NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER

Retired Marine Gen. James Jones.

James B. Steinberg, former deputy national security adviser.

ENERGY SECRETARY

Dan Reicher, director of climate change and energy initiatives at Google, former assistant energy secretary in charge of efficiency and renewable energy programs in the Clinton administration.

Former Rep. Philip Sharp, D-Ind., president of Resources for the Future think tank.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. D-Kan.

INTERIOR SECRETARY

Rep. Raul M. Grijalva, D-Ariz.

Former Gov. John Kitzhaber, D-Ore.

Former Gov. Tony Knowles, D-Alaska.

Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif.

EPA ADMINISTRATOR

Lisa P. Jackson, commissioner of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

Mary Nichols, head of California Air Resources Board.

Kathleen McGinty, former secretary of Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT SECRETARY

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz.

Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C.

Renee Glover, head of Atlanta's housing authority

Nicolas Retsinas, director of Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies

Shaun Donovan, commissioner of New York City's housing department.

LABOR SECRETARY

Ed McElroy, former president of the American Federation of Teachers

Former Rep. Dick Gephardt, D-Mo.

Linda Chavez-Thompson, former AFL-CIO vice president

Former Rep. David Bonior, D-Mich., member of Obama's Transition Economic Advisory Board.

Maria Echaveste, former Clinton White House adviser.

COMMERCE SECRETARY

Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M.

Laura D'Andrea Tyson, former chair of White House Council of Economic Advisers under President Clinton.

OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET DIRECTOR

Peter Orszag, director of Congressional Budget Office.

EDUCATION SECRETARY

Colin Powell, former secretary of state, former chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Sebelius.

Arne Duncan, chief executive officer of Chicago public schools.

Inez Tenenbaum, former South Carolina schools superintendent.

Linda Darling-Hammond, education professor at Stanford University.

TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY

Jane Garvey, former head of Federal Aviation Administration.

Mortimer Downey, former deputy transportation secretary.

Gephardt.

Sebelius.

AGRICULTURE SECRETARY

Former Gov. Tom Vilsack, D-Iowa.

Tom Buis, president of National Farmers Union.

Former Rep. Charles Stenholm, D-Texas.

VETERANS AFFAIRS

Tammy Duckworth, a disabled Iraq war veteran and Illinois veterans affairs director.

Former Sen. Max Cleland. D-Ga., a Vietnam veteran who had three limbs amputated after a grenade blast.

Current VA Secretary James Peake.

Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, D-Md.