With 9.6% unemployment and falling private sector wages, one would assume that the Obama Administration would be worried about getting the national economy back on track. Instead, Politico‘s Mike Allen reports that the administration is more concerned with the gender composition of the economic team.

The White House said Aug. 9 that a successor to Christina Romer, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, would be named “by September 3rd, when Dr. Romer leaves her post.” That’s today, and no announcement is planned before the holiday. The West Wing has been flummoxed over a replacement. The Chicago crowd likes campaign stalwart Austan Goolsbee, now working under Romer, and no obvious alternative to him emerged. Goolsbee’s good on TV, and they need a communicator. But some aides argue for keeping a woman on the econ. team.

So if someone comes along tomorrow with all of the answers to the nation’s problems but that person is a man they’ll turn him down?

Whether you’re a man or woman has nothing to do with your effectiveness as an economic adviser. Obama should be telling these quota-pushers to grow up and get out of the way. He should be saying that the nation doesn’t have time for this unnecessary crap. He should be ignoring them and simply naming the best person for the job.

He should be doing all of that but the lack of an announcement today suggests that he won’t. I wouldn’t at all be surprised if he’s currently looking to ensure a gender-diverse team rather than simply create a team of the best people, regardless of gender.