Could Google's CEO take over at Commerce?

Is Google CEO Eric Schmidt in line to become the next commerce secretary?

According to Hayley Tsukayama, writing in the Washington Post's Post Tech blog, he may well be.

"Buzz has been building for the past week that Schmidt is being seriously considered as a candidate for the administration post once he leaves the company in April, after a decade at Google’s helm," Tsukayama writes. "Google co-founder Larry Page will step in as CEO this spring. Schmidt recently secured a nod from former Reagan administration Commerce Department Counsel Clyde Prestowitz. Prestowitz, whose endorsement could signal bipartisan support, said in a Foreign Policy piece that he would 'wholeheartedly urge President Obama to move ahead with this appointment.' ”

The Obama administration recently announced that current Commerce Secretary Gary Locke is leaving that post to serve as U.S. ambassador to China.