Rubin’s departure

Someone once said Robert Rubin was the only adult in the Clinton administration. A bit of hyperbole perhaps, but in a White House full of colorful characters, the treasury secretary stood out for his steadiness and sound judgment. His understanding of Wall Street and of the changing nature of the international economy will be missed.

Republicans accepted Mr. Rubin because of the stress he put on balancing the federal budget. Democrats liked him for his caution against turning over Social Security to the stock market, his defense in 1993 of a tax increase on the wealthiest taxpayers and other policies to advance social programs. The public profited from his earlier role as co-chairman of Goldman, Sachs and his thorough grounding in investments. His ideas usually were based on solid research and were presented without flash or ego.

Despite the robust national economy that continued through his tenure, Mr. Rubin will be remembered for two connected international events. His advocacy for the bailout of Mexico, which worked swiftly to calm the economy there but also protected high-risk investors, is sometimes blamed for the Asian crisis in 1997, on the theory that investors there assumed they too would be protected from risk. He received more criticism for his approval of the International Monetary Fund’s decision to force the countries in crisis to raise interest rates and accept recessions as a means to recovery.

If Asia’s economic growth continues as it has for much of 1999, Mr. Rubin may again appear to have advocated for the wiser course. He will be long gone from government service by then, of course, but his decisions will have again served the nation well.