Today is Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's last day on the job. We are ... bereft? No, not bereft. What is the opposite of bereft? Elated? Well, we're not quite elated, that would presume more interest in Timothy Geithner than we could possibly muster. Let us look to his private going-away speech for one last glimpse of Timothy Geithner, unsung hero.
“I am not going to say anything nice about Ben Bernanke, because when I do, it just encourages those who think that we’re too close and that I’ve compromised the independence of the Fed. [laughter] But he knows what I think. He’s a hero. He’s the Buddha of central bankers…but more active. [laughter]
Ha? Haha? Hilarious .
Let us give you just one example (because we are not Kris E. Benson, who is defending her doctoral thesis or something this week? Good luck, Kris E. Benson!) of Timothy Geithner constantly just stickin' it to the banks and coming down on the side of the little guy (the "not-banks"):
[Y]esterday’s Obama proposal to prohibit banks to use their deposit customers’ money to speculate on Wall Street was a repudiation of sorts of his two top economic advisers, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Larry Summers, both of whom argued against this proposal. Indeed, it appears that it was Vice President Biden and Paul Volcker teaming up against Geithner and Summers here.
Wait, Geithner was for letting banks gamble away their customers deposits? And Old Handsome Joe Biden saved the day?
Huh.
[ WaPo ]
The Ball of the Graiae. Wait, that doesn't work, does it?
Yes, the Blingie needs a big CHA_CHING sound effect.