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Second-ranking Senate Democrat Richard Durbin will oppose the nomination of Antonio Weiss to a top Treasury position, a Senate Democratic aide said today.

Durbin joins Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts in opposition to Weiss, the global head of investment banking at Lazard Ltd. (LAZ), to be Treasury undersecretary for domestic finance.

Lazard, a merger advisory firm, has been involved in several tax-inversion deals, in which companies reduce their U.S. tax bills by moving their addresses overseas.

Durbin of Illinois, a congressional ally of President Barack Obama, has concerns about Weisss work on corporate inversions, said the aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the senators views.

A top White House aide said Weiss still can be approved by the Senate.

Im confident that hes confirmable, White House adviser John Podesta said a phone interview. We intend to fight for his confirmation with Democrats and Republicans because we think hes very well qualified.

The split among Democrats could complicate prospects for the nomination, said Senator John Thune of South Dakota, a Finance Committee member and the third-ranking Republican in the Senate.

Obviously, weve got to fill these positions, theyre important positions and theyre going to be making the nominees, Thune said today without taking a position on Weiss. If youve got Dem-on-Dem fights on some of these issues, I think it complicates it, makes it harder to clear the deck to get them done.

Antonio Weiss, global head of investment banking at Lazard Ltd., speaks at the Bloomberg Markets 50 Summit in New York, on Sept. 13, 2012. Close

Antonio Weiss, global head of investment banking at Lazard Ltd., speaks at the... Read More

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Durbin Said to Oppose Obama Choice of Weiss to Treasury Post