CQ Roll Call’s banking expert Ben Weyl alerts us to a Wall Street Journal report indicating that a former aide to Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., may have overtaken a former staffer for Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., as the next head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the Obama administration has been going through the vetting process for former Stabenow Chief of Staff Amanda Renteria to take the CFTC job, replacing Gary Gensler.

“Amanda’s service in my office was invaluable. She’s incredibly smart, hardworking and dedicated, and she’s known for building bridges to find consensus and get things done,” Stabenow said. “I understand that she’s under consideration for a number of different positions, and given her breadth of qualifications, I know she would be a tremendous asset to the administration.”

Stabenow is chairwoman of the Agriculture Committee, which has jurisdiction over the CFTC.

Oddly enough, before the news that Renteria was under consideration surfaced Thursday, CFTC Commissioner Mark Wetjen was considered a likely chairman. Wetjen spent years as a top Reid aide. Weyl reports in his Executive Briefing on Banking & Finance that Wetjen faced liberal opposition to his positions on derivatives regulations:

Indeed, at this point, elevating Wetjen would likely provoke anger on the left and lead to unwelcome editorials for the administration about its deference to Wall Street. Renteria, who has less of a track record and also a strong connection to the Senate, which will need to confirm her, might be a safer choice.