Either your brains or your signature will be on this resignation letter.
That’s what Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner might as well be saying to the next corporate CEOs he intends to muscle out of their posts. Bloomberg reports Treasury’s highest-ranking tax evader said he is gearing up to turn senior management and boards of directors at banks that require “exceptional” assistance from the U.S. government into roadkill.
“If in the future, banks need exceptional assistance in order to get through this, then we will make sure that assistance comes,” while ensuring taxpayers are protected, Geithner said today in an interview on the CBS “Face the Nation” program. “Where that requires a change in management and the board, then we will do that.” […]
“Where we’ve had to do exceptional things,” the government has replaced management and boards of directors, Geithner said. […]
The Treasury secretary pledged to enforce congressional legislation that limits pay at companies receiving government loans. Geithner said the Obama administration has no intention of letting banks get around the rules.
“Our obligation is to apply the laws that Congress just passed,” he said. “We want the American taxpayer’s assistance going to generate greater lending, not providing excess compensation.” […]
Geithner seems to be referring to Rep. Alan Grayson’s (D-Florida) flagrantly unconstitutional, un-American compensation cap bill. This Mussolini-style corporatist legislation that would hand Geithner extensive control over salaries of employees who work for businesses that take in government bailout funds was approved by Barney Frank’s House Financial Services Committee last week on a 38 to 22 vote.
Neil Cavuto of Fox Business easily made Grayson look like a fool (it wasn’t hard, no doubt) last week as Grayson repeatedly ducked tough questions about the legislation. Of course, making fun of the clueless Geithner is no challenge either.
