I don’t have any idea what’s really going on with regard to the new head of the Consumer Financial Protection Board. But Matt Yglesias is right: there’s a strong prima facie case for appointing Elizabeth Warren, who was instrumental in getting the institution created. As Matt says, such an appointment would raise the agency’s profile, and help attract first-rate staff.

There’s also a political aspect. The Obama administration suffers from the perception that it’s been too much in the pocket of Wall Street — partly because there’s at least a grain of truth to the accusation. Appointing a prominent pro-consumer crusader would have to help repair the image, while appointing somebody unknown to the public, especially when expectations are running high, would hurt.

And bear in mind that Warren really is a pioneering expert on household debt and financial distress, who has also shown an ability to work effectively in an official position. Against that, whatever personal quarrels she may or may not have had shouldn’t count at all.