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'''Timothy Geithner''' (b. 1961) became the [[Secretary of the Treasury]] in the [[Obama Administration]] in January, 2009. Educated at Dartmouth and Johns Hopkins, he spent many years abroad. Previously he was president of the powerful Federal Reserve Bank of New York. [[Image:Geithner1.jpg|thumb|370px|Critics feared Geithner's vague plans would crash]]

'''Timothy Geithner''' (b. 1961) became the [[Secretary of the Treasury]] in the [[Obama Administration]] in January, 2009. [[Image:Geithner1.jpg|thumb|370px|Critics feared Geithner's vague plans would crash]] Geithner got off to a very bad start, as his programs from 2008 have worked poorly, he was ridiculed and humiliated during his confirmation hearings for not paying taxes, his first major proposal as Secretary was uniformly repudiated by all sides, and the Treasury lacks (as of March 24) a single major senior official besides himself.

He is a nonpartisan technical expert who worked for both Republican and Democratic administrations. In 2008 he was deeply involved in the complex moves by the Federal Reserve and the Treasury to bailout banks in the [[Financial Crisis of 2008]]. That included $700 billion in money sought by president [[George W. Bush]] and passed by bipartisan majorities in Congress in October, 2008, and trillions in loan guarantees made by the Federal Reserve on its own authority. Geithner now is the person most responsible for bringing recovery to the economy. 

Educated at Dartmouth and Johns Hopkins, he spent many years abroad. Previously he was president of the powerful Federal Reserve Bank of New York.  Geithner started as a Republican and changed his voter registration — to Independent — only in the late 1990s, when he became under secretary for international affairs in the Clinton administration.

Geithner got off to a very bad start, as his programs from 2008 have worked poorly, he was ridiculed and humiliated during his confirmation hearings for not paying taxes, his first major proposal as Secretary was uniformly repudiated by all sides, and the Treasury lacks (as of March 24) a single major senior official besides himself. [[Image:Geithner2,jpg.jpg|thumb|290px]]  

 

He is a nonpartisan technical expert who worked for both Republican and Democratic administrations.

In 2008 he was deeply involved in the complex moves by the Federal Reserve and the Treasury to bailout banks in the [[Financial Crisis of 2008]]. That included $700 billion in money sought by president [[George W. Bush]] and passed by bipartisan majorities in Congress in October, 2008, and trillions in loan guarantees made by the Federal Reserve on its own authority. Geithner now is the person most responsible for bringing recovery to the economy.

 

[[Image:Geithner2,jpg.jpg|thumb|290px]]  

Geithner was appointed to the Treasury largely on the basis of his work at the New York Fed. His most important action there was design the bailout of giant insurance firm [[American Insurance Group|AIG]], with 80% government ownership of AIG. It received $170 billion from the government. AIG scandalized the nation in March 2009 by giving out $165 million in bonuses to the very people who caused it to lose over $60 billion after the government took it over.  

Geithner was appointed to the Treasury largely on the basis of his work at the New York Fed. His most important action there was design the bailout of giant insurance firm [[American Insurance Group|AIG]], with 80% government ownership of AIG. It received $170 billion from the government. AIG scandalized the nation in March 2009 by giving out $165 million in bonuses to the very people who caused it to lose over $60 billion after the government took it over.