my letter to Obama

Today, 17 Nov 2009:

Dear President Obama:

Treasury Secretary Geithner is not up to the job. Fire him.

From the recently released SIGTARP report:

"Confident that a private sector solution would be forthcoming, FRBNY did not develop a contingency plan..."
[emphasis added]

Does this sound familiar? It should: it characterizes the decision-making process under your predecessor in the Oval Office. No one had the imagination to foresee alternatives. From Condi’s, “no one could have imagined…” to Greenspan’s, “this crisis, however, has turned out to be much broader than anything I could have imagined…”, W’s tenure was characterized by an absence of imagination, and the consequent failure to plan effectively for foreseeable alternatives.

The SIGTARP report strongly suggests that TreasSec Geithner suffers this same disease.

In Congressional testimony last fall, former TreasSec Paulson stated,

“There is no playbook for responding to turmoil we have never faced.”

This was two (2) months after the shit had hit the fan. My advice to him at the time was that his #1 priority in these two months ought to have been drafting a playbook!

When TreasSec Geithner assumed the reins, I sent him similar advice: draft a playbook!

Put together a plan – no, a strategy, starting with a strategic objective. Show it to us. Convince us that you know how we get from where we are now to where we want to be.
(It would help to start by giving us a hint where you think we want to be!)

I’ve yet to see a comprehensive, self-consistent strategy from Treasury.
Is there one?

Treasury Secretary Geithner suffers from an absence of imagination, and has provided no evidence that he is up to the job.
Fire him. Today.

Sincerely,

Yes - I do anticipate a reply, with a hand-written address!

p.s. in an email to President Obama covering much the same territory, I also suggested that a committee of seven (7) randomly chosen citizens could do a better job formulating policy than has TreasSec Geithner.