Who's Who on Obama's Dream Team

March 25, 2009— -- On Jan. 20, President Obama inherited a nation in financial turmoil and waging wars on two fronts overseas, which made a quick, smooth transition imperative.

Obama has been working hard to select his Cabinet and administration to stand beside him through that shift. But several of the people he selected to navigate those challenges hit bumps in the road during the confirmation process. Obama's initial picks for secretary of Commerce and secretary of Health and Human Services had both withdrawn by early February. Several chosen by the president also faced questions about their taxes as their histories were examined in the early weeks of Obama's presidency.

Here are Obama's picks:

John Podesta heads up Obama's transition team. Podesta served as White House chief of staff under Clinton from October 1998 until the end of his term and is currently the president and CEO of the Center for American Progress.

ABC News' Martha Raddatz, Richard Coolidge, Kirit Radia, Luis Martinez, Jake Tapper, Huma Khan, Sunlen Miller, Nitya Venkataraman, Matt Jaffe and Kate Barrett and The Associated Press contributed to this report.