Posted by Tina
He was critical of the government’s and the mortgage industry’s lax lending practices, which might be reason enough to be thrilled with President-elect Obamas choice for Treasury Secretary. According to IBD, Tim Geithner is a smart pick in these troubling times:
* Wall Street rallied nearly 500 points on news of Geithner’s pick *** Geithner lends continuity from Bush to Obama as the government responds to the financial meltdown, since he has led the Fed’s response. No learning curve needed. *** Nor is this his first time in a crisis. Geithner spent the 1990s climbing the Treasury ladder, becoming an indispensable part of the team that handled the 1995 Mexican peso collapse, the 1997 Asia crisis and 1998’s Russian ruble meltdown and Long-Term Capital Management debacle. *** Accounts from that time say Geithner was a steadying hand between the cautious Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and Summers, his aggressive deputy. Yet he earned both men’s respect. As Larry Kudlow has noted, it doesn’t hurt that Rubin and Summers supported free trade and a strong dollar, which suggests Geithner will too. *