You're watching...
Jon Hilsenrath, WSJ chief economic correspondent, grades Timothy Geithner’s time as Treasury secretary as his term is ending.
Also in this playlist...
Auto-advance: ON
Auto-advance
This transcript is automatically generated
He's calling it quits his tenure has been controversial.
Was better friend to big banks or to the average channel.
On his last day John hills and -- while Tim Geithner.
Into the Wall Street Journal is the chief economics correspondent Andy joins me with a report card what grade are you giving hand.
Well so let let's let's go subject by subject and what about -- Gutierrez -- good grades first of the bedroom split what's the bank bailout because that's a thing that he's most remembered for so what grade would you give a man and you know what.
That's where I'm -- give him a good grade this is this the part of the crisis response that's perhaps most controversial.
Most you know so many people right now say that it was a bad there was a bad thing to do I -- -- NA you know our financial system.
Was on the brink of I think.
Like many minus actually had undermined if you -- -- high grade inflation here in the middle Sally Harry yeah given me the minuses because they took some of that money and lost in bailing out GM.
But when you look at what they did with the banks -- stabilize the financial system and that actually make -- made money on those investments.
We're in a bad place and they help to -- out of -- -- you gotta give credit where it's -- I guess although the folks at Lehman certainly wouldn't agree with that I still know a lot of better people who wonder why they were let go and AIG was.
Solis is arbitrary right you know what I'm talking about here is that -- the way -- -- -- -- disaster no absolutely I was I was teasing.
-- -- ago Fannie -- of reform and an an -- housing sector in general which was you know a huge part of the reason why we still -- that they had the.
They they got the banking sector back on its feet and they haven't done anything with Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac since bailing them out they get -- -- -- that Geithner has really moved nowhere on trying to reconfigure.
Our mortgage finance system.
And it had a lot of problems trying to push through their own efforts for instance today get people out of -- -- mortgages or get more refinancing done.
They get they get an -- on that particularly because they haven't even tried.
Yeah put forward a plan that would reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- -- like share Exxon million right away Fannie and Freddie have been huge money loses for the got.
Talked about the debt ceiling debate I mean 88 I I feel like he wasn't even really apart at -- Well.
He gets a they have the Treasury's responsibility.
Really is to have.
A contingency plan you know this is a guy who steer the economy through all of these financial crisis.
-- you ought to have some kind of plan in place for dealing with.
The moment when we might hit the debt crisis.
And inspector general looked at this last year and discover that the treasury never put in place a contingency plan for you know what would happen if congress never got around to raising the debt ceiling yet for lack of planning.
They get a low grade on -- -- -- -- I'm what do you think he's gonna do next I mean after it for me after like a six month vacation in the Bahamas then I would start thinking about what Atlantis I think I think he might -- more than more than -- year since my synagogue on -- it's gonna talk front.
Well you know it's -- he did an interview with Politico today and ruled out taking the top job at the Fed.
I thought that he was potentially Janet Yellen is biggest biggest competition for that job.
Because Obama.
Clearly feels very loyal to the guy.
So you know and Geithner really wanted to be the Fed chief I would think you would have a chance that if the fact that he said today he he's not in the running for that.
Good as he could change his mind I think that makes it likely that Janet Yellen who is right now the vice chairwoman of the Fed.
Could get that job when Bernanke leaves in January 2014.
Johnny where that up puts Bernanke -- -- that puts Geithner.
You know maybe I'll make a turn in the private sector I didn't think he goes to a big bank that would just be.
Horrible publicity move but.
There are lots of other smaller investment funds that he can be looking around for a lot of these guys guys also I know a lot of people -- left the Fed have got out.
On the speaking circuit and you're out of privately and that is very lucrative very lucrative allotment of much about site at -- does that rapper while John tells the graphics are much.
Okay thanks a lot.
