Timothy Geithner is the current Secretary of the Treasury and was the 9th president of the Federal Reserve, the central banking system in the United States.

In June 2009, Geithner came under pressure from critics of his financial policies even as the Chinese media publicly decried their government's purchases of American debt. However, Geithner insisted that the Chinese government was still confident in the ability of the United States to make good on the debt and that it represented a good investment for them.Washington Post: Geithner: China Confident in U.S. Policy Steps (June 2, 2009)

On April 25, 2009, Geithner encouraged world financial leaders to follow through on a pledge made at the 2009 G20 London Summit which provides $1.1 trillion to the International Monetary Fund and other global lending organizations. Geithner stressed the importance of working together with urgency to bolster the IMF.KansasCity.com: IMF head says it will sell bonds to raise funds

In March 2009, The Obama Administration announced plans that the government will be buying up to a half-trillion dollars in bad bank assets. Geithner has supported the proposal stating that no government action to free up lending by institutions may lead to a prolonged recession.The Houston Chronicle: Administration seeks to free frozen... (March 23, 2009)

Some members of Congress and the Obama administration have known for months that AIG was going to pay huge bonuses after getting government bailouts. A November SEC filing by AIG detailed more than $469 million in "retention payments". Although AIG CEO Edward Liddy was pressed by members of Congress throughout the fall and winter to cut back on the payouts, legal experts told Liddy that the bonuses were contractually required and if they tried to back out of the bonuses, AIG would lose any suit brought by the employees. According to the administration, Geithner and Obama learned of the bonuses the week of March 11th, 2009 and attempted to convince the company to make changes to the deal.Associated Press: Obama, Congress knew about AIG bonuses for months (March 17, 2009)

On March 18, 2009, Senator Christopher Dodd said that he had been pressured by officials at the Treasury Department to modify language in the 2009 Stimulus Package to allow for companies which receive bailout funds to be allowed to give out high bonuses. Dodd said he was informed that the Treasury Department could otherwise be sued by companies that had bonuses written into their contracts.Huffington Post: Treasury Officials Insisted On Weakening Bonus Provision (March 18, 2009) Giethner confirmed Dodd's account of events to CNN the following day.CNN: Geithner: Treasury pushed for bonus loophole (March 19, 2009)

On February 15, 2009, the Obama administration declared that they would name a panel to track the issues dealing with the exercising of the automaker bailout, rather than hire a specific car czar. Geithner and National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers will oversee the project.New York Times: G.M. Pushes Auto Union for Concessions in Restructuring (February 16, 2009)

On January 26, 2009, he was confirmed by the Senate as Treasury Secretary by a vote of 60-34. Geithner's confirmation had been delayed due to concerns over his failure to pay taxes earlier in the decade. The delay in Geithner's confirmation subsequently delayed his ability to appoint his economic advisory team, whose first order of business will be to analyze and formulate potential solutions to the economic crisis.Reuters: Geithner seen winning Treasury job despite tax woes (January 26, 2009) The Wall Street Journal: Geithner Delay Slows Assembly of Crisis Team (January 24, 2009)

On January 13, 2009, Geithner was questioned by members of the Senate Finance Committee about concerns over his admission that he failed to pay $34,000 dollars in taxes while he was head of the International Monetary Fund from 2001-2004. Questions were also raised about the legal employment status of a housekeeper who worked for him for several months without proper employment documentation.MSNBC: Tax problems may plague treasury pick (January 14, 2009) WashingtonPost.com: Treasury Nominee Accounts for Own Tax Errors CNN: Geithner questioned about former housekeeper, taxes

Geithner filed amended tax returns reporting a combined additional tax and interest of $31,536, composed of self-employment earnings he had failed to report from 2001-2002, in addition to $16,000 he had amended in back taxes from 2004-2006. Geithner voluntarily submitted the amendment following his appointment by Obama.Yahoo! Finance UK: U.S. Senate panel details Geithner's tax errors (January 13, 2009)

On February 10, 2009, Geithner unveiled the Obama administration's specific plan to overhaul the TARP funds and stimulate the U.S. economy. Politicians on both sides of the aisle reportedly laughed at administration officials while being briefed on the details of the plan.The Huffington Post: Administration Officials Met With Laughter At Bailout Briefing On Tuesday Geithner finished vetting questions from Congress, and on Wednesday, February 12, 2009 he will meet with banking-industry executives to go over the financial rescue plans.Bloomberg.com: Geithner Defends Lack of Details in Financial Plan (February 11, 2009)

While speaking to members of a congressional oversight panel on April 21, 2009, Geithner acknowledged the continued slump in the financial market, though defended his bank rescue plan which had come under heavy criticism following the release of a watchdog agency report which warned administration officials that the program could make the federal government more vulnerable to fraud while increasing taxpayer losses.FOXNews.com: Geithner Defends Bank Rescue Program Amid Warnings

On February 26, 2009, the Obama administration revealed their ten year budget plan. Under the plan, entitled "A New Era of Responsibility", the first year deficit would be a record $1.75 trillion. The ten year plan is dependent upon cutbacks in defense spending after removal of troops from Iraq, as well as an optimistic forecast for economic improvements to provide government funding. The plan calls for the reduction of the deficit to $712 billion by 2019.The New York Times: $1.75 Trillion Deficit Seen ... (February 26, 2009)

On March 25, 2009, Geithner commented on People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan’s proposal for a new international reserve currency. Geithner said that he had not read the proposal, but supports increasing the "special drawing rights" of the International Monetary Fund. The dollar declined in value after Geithner's comment, but soon regained its value after Geithner said he did not see any changes for the U.S. currency.Bloomberg: Geithner Remarks on IMF Roil Foreign-Exchange Market (March 25, 2009)

On March 26, 2009, Geithner proposed a vast expansion of the federal governments authority over the United States financial system and institutions. The proposal included a new set of imposed uniform standards on all large financial firms and allows the federal government to regulate all firms trading in derivatives.The Washington Post: Geithner Proposes Vast Expansion of U.S. Oversight of Financial System

The U.S. House of Representatives approved a Democrat-sponsored $3.4 trillion budget on April 2, 2009. The budget was in-line with the original proposal by the Obama administration. A Republican-sponsered alternative was defeated in a earlier vote by the House.

On April 22, 2009, Geithner spoke before a meeting of international finance officials and called for members of the world economy to work together to create "a new, more stable and more sustainable pattern of growth in the future."CNN: Geithner urges better global cooperation (April 22, 2009)

In May 2009, Geithner announced that the government had no plans to cap executive salary on Wall Street, despite admissions that Wall Street pay structures contributed to the current economic crisis.Huffington Post: Geithner Says No Caps on Executive Compensation... (May 18, 2009)