During the financial crisis, as the public called for limits on the $168 million in bonuses to be paid out to AIG employees, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner had one stark response, The Wall Street Journal reports this morning. "This is not Bolivia," Geithner said.
Two new profiles of Geithner provide revealing glimpses into one of the Obama administration's most polarizing figures, and may lend ammunition to Geithner's critics, who argue that he's been far too sympathetic to bailed out institutions. Geithner, the two pieces suggest, is still quite anxious to reassure the public that he's more of a public servant than an entrenched ally to the banking sector.
The WSJ's piece emphasizes that Geithner sees himself as a "behind-the-scenes diplomat rather than a politician," who has resisted taking actions in response to public pressure if he feels those actions won't help the economy overall. He has resisted calls for a global tax on bank trading transactions and has allowed bailed out banks to quickly repay government funds, rather than remain under the government's direct purview.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/22/tim-geithners-vogue-inter_n_471196.html-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yes Timmeh, I'm sure your a brilliant public servant. Do us a favor, quit and run Citibank, I'm not too fond of that institution and would enjoy protesting when you come begging for money because I don't think you could run a lemonade stand.
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