Geithner said some of the signs that confidence is returning in the fourth quarter include consumers spending more, businesses investing again, stronger exports and a more stable housing market.
“These things all help ”” they all make a big difference,” Geithner said. “But we were in a very deep hole, and it’s going to take a long time to repair the damage done to confidence.”
Geithner said it’s important that the administration continue to work with Congress to pass financial reform legislation that can “prevent the next crisis” and build a “more stable financial system.”
“But right now, the real risk we face is that banks are not lending enough and not going to provide the capital businesses need to grow for the economy to strengthen going forward,” he said.
Pure pig piffle.
Mr. Geithner was president and CEO of the New York branch of the Federal Reserve from 2003 through early 2009. The primary task of the New York Fed is to supervise investment banking and Wall Street, and Mr. Geithner was the head supervisor there for the entire period during which things turned into a bubble and blew out of control.
When Mr. Obama speaks of “the mess we inherited” it was most clearly the responsibility of Mr. Geithner and the offices under his direct supervision. Why anyone would look to him for a solution is beyond me
Derivatives.
until they’re fixed, the global economy remains in peril.
“But we were in a very deep hole, and it’s going to take a long time to – er, dig our way out of it. More Chinese dollars, please”