Virginia's IT Chief to fill CTO position?

The latest name to circulate as the possible pick for Obama's chief technology officer is Virginia's secretary of technology, Aneesh Chopra, according to a source with inside knowledge of the administration's plans.

Chopra is the latest in a long list of individuals who have been named as possibilities for the position. Reports that Cisco's CTO Padrasmee Warrior and D.C.'s CTO Vivek Kundra were candidates for the job were later dismissed. Sources now point to Kundra as Karen Evan's replacement as administrator for e-government and information technology in the Office of Management and Budget.

The CTO position, which generated a lot of enthusiasm in the IT community because Obama promised during the campaign to have the position report directly to him, has lost some of its prestige with reports that it will carry less clout than anticipated, being placed farther down in the reporting chain.