John Snow’s stewardship of the American economy compares favorably with any Treasury secretary since the 1960s – which is doing nothing to stop talk he’s on the way out.

Mr. Snow is being blamed for President Bush’s failure to get a political lift from an economy that’s created 4 million jobs in the last two years. Speculation on Mr. Snow’s future is growing now that Joshua Bolten, who takes over as Bush’s chief of staff April 15, has been given the go-ahead by the president to reorganize the White House staff.

“Snow’s demise has been predicted almost since he took the job,” said Vin Weber, a former Republican lawmaker from Minnesota who retains close ties to the White House.

“Eventually, the speculation that Snow is going to leave is going to become a self-fulfilling prophesy.”

The American economy is doing as well under Mr. Snow as it did under Robert Rubin, President Clinton’s Treasury secretary. Forecasters surveyed by Bloomberg News predict growth at an annual rate of 4.7% last quarter, which would lift the average under Mr. Snow to 3.8%, matching Mr. Rubin’s record and that of James Baker, President Reagan’s Treasury chief.

No Treasury secretary to serve at least three years, the average for the job, has overseen faster growth since Henry Fowler, who served President Johnson from 1965 to 1968.

The economy is one of the few bright spots for Mr. Bush. Almost two-thirds of Americans disapprove of the president’s handling of the war in Iraq, according to a February 25-March 1 Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll. Mr. Bush’s support for the sale of six port terminals to a Dubai company provoked a revolt among lawmakers, and his campaign for changes to the Social Security system failed last year. Mr. Bush’s approval rating fell to 37% in a March 29-30 Time Magazine poll.

The latest spate of Snow-will-go news reports coincided with Mr. Bush’s announcement that Mr. Bolten will succeed Andrew Card as chief of staff.