Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner disputes report that he’s stepping down
Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner disputed a report that he was considering resigning after finishing debt negotiations with Congress, saying he would continue in his job “for the foreseeable future.”
“I live for this work,” he told former President Clinton on Thursday during a question-and-answer session in Chicago as part of a conference by the Clinton Global Initiative.
Bloomberg News reported that Geithner had signaled to the White House he might step down after the conclusion of the difficult negotiations over raising the nation’s debt ceiling, with which he has been deeply involved. The nation is set to hit its debt limit Aug. 2.
The report said one factor was the desire of Geithner’s son to attend his last year of high school in New York, where the family lived before Geithner joined the administration in 2009. Geithner and his wife, Carole Sonnenfeld Geithner, have two children and live in Bethesda, Md., but still own a home in Larchmont, N.Y.
Geithner said he would continue as Treasury secretary after the school year begins in the fall.
“My son’s going back to New York to finish high school,” he told Clinton. “I’m going to be commuting for a while, but I’m going to be doing this for the foreseeable future.”
Geithner is the last original member of the team of top economic advisors that President Obama brought with him into his administration. His potential departure has been the subject of conjecture for some time.
Geithner’s influence has risen as other key officials have stepped down over the last year, most notably Lawrence H. Summers, who had served as the director of the National Economic Council.
The average tenure of the last 10 Treasury secretaries has been about 32 months. Geithner has served 29 months. He also served from 2003 until early 2009 as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In that position, he played a key role in responding to the financial crisis in 2008.
“I think he’s done a great job in a backbreaking position. He may even have a harder job than the secretary of State,” said Clinton, whose wife is Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Geithner’s departure could be a problem for Obama. Senate Republicans have blocked or threatened to block the confirmation of many nominees. Getting a new Treasury secretary confirmed would be difficult and would give Republicans additional leverage in their battles with the White House.
