Report: Most Uniquely Qualified Candidate has an understudy
posted at 12:39 pm on March 13, 2009 by Ed Morrissey
Recall, if you will, the rationale provided by the Obama administration for sticking with Tim Geithner when his tax troubles came to light. No one could possibly replace him, a view also oddly adopted by both Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill. Geithner had unique qualifications that no one else could possibly match, and his show of incompetence in tax filings paled in comparison to the disaster that would befall the US and the world if Geithner withdrew.
It turns out that even the Obama administration didn’t buy that argument:
A friend reports chatter within the Obama administration that Tim Geithner was a bad choice for Treasury Secretary and that Quadrangle partner Steve Rattner (currently the car czar) was brought in partly to have a good relief pitcher on hand.
This doesn’t surprise us: We think that, in this crisis, Tim Geithner is clearly the wrong man for the job. But this is also only unconfirmed chatter at this point.
Would Steve Rattner be a better Treasury Secretary than Tim Geithner? Our immediate reaction is yes. Steve has worked on multiple sides of the fence–as a journalist, banker, and investor–and he has a lot more experience than Tim does.
Gee, does that mean that someone else could be Treasury Secretary other than Geithner? Is it possible that we could have found someone else to not come up with a plan and to not hire a staff? Someone who could get their rear end handed to them by the Senate Budget Committee for not doing their homework and failing at math?
Steve Rattner isn’t the only understudy riding the bench. Lawrence Summers, director of Barack Obama’s National Economic Council, actually served as Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton. He would have probably been confirmed by acclamation, especially after the Senate found out about Geithner’s tax problems. Unfortunately, Summers made the mistake of speaking his mind about the possible causes of the gender disparity in mathematics and engineering while running Harvard. Curiously, this became more of a disqualification than Geithner’s tax evasions, which demonstrates the commitment to political correctness over substance in Team Obama.
If Obama has understudies on hand, it’s time to send the diva packing.
Blowback
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Rattner, the car czar, went to detroit last week cuz he didn’t understand how the auto industry worked. so let’s promote him.
lorien1973 on March 13, 2009 at 12:41 PM
I’m so glad I kept Bob Corker’s email to me, lamely attempting to explain his vote for confirmation. He told me that
I’m going to send it back to him and tell him to eat crow.
ladyingray on March 13, 2009 at 12:43 PM
Moe Howard had understudies too…
Akzed on March 13, 2009 at 12:43 PM
“Dr. Geitner, Dr. Rattner, Dr. Geitner.”
Akzed on March 13, 2009 at 12:45 PM
Ed,
the Geithner pick was always a puzzle to me. He doesn’t have the chops or know how to do the job. Why would Obama be so adamant that only Geithner could do it? Could it be his ideology in other areas?
portlandon on March 13, 2009 at 12:45 PM
Yeah, but they sucked.
Ed Morrissey on March 13, 2009 at 12:45 PM
Let’s face it. If it’s a choice made by Obama or his supporters, it will always be the one dude who can do the most damage to the country. Competence is toxic to the O’bummer administration.
Guardian on March 13, 2009 at 12:46 PM
Oh please send it back to him two seconds after the withdrawal. Let him know the disaster to befall the US was the friggin’ appointment in the first place!
sherry on March 13, 2009 at 12:46 PM
Breaking: The Chinese Government just made PUBLIC statements abour being worried about the direction of the US and the safety of their investments in T-bills…. via CNBC
TheBigOldDog on March 13, 2009 at 12:46 PM
The O wants Geithner to fail, at least in the short run. The worse things get, the more the public will accept draconian measures to fix things.
Who do you think is interfering with Geithner’s ability to staff his department?
Labamigo on March 13, 2009 at 12:47 PM
LOL.
rockmom on March 13, 2009 at 12:47 PM
The economy folds and Geithner’s still figuring out how to have business cards printed.
Cicero43 on March 13, 2009 at 12:48 PM
I think you meant to say blunderstudy
Mike in GB on March 13, 2009 at 12:48 PM
Does being Premier of the People’s Republic of China disqualify a guy from also serving as US Sec’y of the Treasury?
Sounds like he has a clue, at least.
Akzed on March 13, 2009 at 12:48 PM
The party of NO doesn’t have much to talk about, I guess. Hey, how about all of those great Bush appointees! Alberto Gonzales! Brownie! Christopher Cox! John Yoo (currently an unemployment statistic), Justice Harriet Myers!
Someone needs to clean up after your brave leader. Thank goodness we have B. Hussein on the case.
capitulus on March 13, 2009 at 12:49 PM
Yes.
lorien1973 on March 13, 2009 at 12:49 PM
Unfortunately for the future of this country, I fear you are completely correct…
TheBigOldDog on March 13, 2009 at 12:49 PM
Rattner being a journalist is a credential for Treasury Secretary?
BigD on March 13, 2009 at 12:49 PM
Keep hanging onto Bush like grim death. Please do. It’ll really help – and be painfully ironic – that Obama is just continuing Bush’s legacy.
lorien1973 on March 13, 2009 at 12:50 PM
Is there a D after his name? If so, he’s emminently qualified!
lorien1973 on March 13, 2009 at 12:50 PM
You don’t get the Three Stooges?
I guess it’s a guy thing.
Akzed on March 13, 2009 at 12:50 PM
I see a new segment for the evening news with a two minute recap of Obama’s gaffes and misteps for the day with the Benny Hill Show theme playing in the background.
WashJeff on March 13, 2009 at 12:51 PM
Most competent administration, EVAH!
As for Summers, he’d be even a worse pick than Geithner.
GarandFan on March 13, 2009 at 12:51 PM
Thanks for the link! When you have Commies worried about your Commie polices you know you’re screwed.
TheBigOldDog on March 13, 2009 at 12:51 PM
JMO, but I think it was some of the liberal hedge fund guys who gave millions to Obama’s campaign who pushed Geithner. Apparently they liked him as head of the New York Fed, and because he had worked alongside Paulson and Bernanke on the financial crisis since the beginning there was also a feeling that he would have a leg up on anyone else in terms of understandign what had already been done. I thought that was plausible reasoning myself. I’m pretty stunned at how bad Geithner has turned out to be.
I don’t know anything about Rattner, but I don’t think his is a name that will inspire confidence in investors. I would feel much better if the White House would tell the feminists to shove it and put Larry Summers back at Treasury where he belongs.
rockmom on March 13, 2009 at 12:52 PM
And the wheels of the bus go thump, thump, thump!
Badger40 on March 13, 2009 at 12:52 PM
Lawrence Summers said this:
“President Obama inherited an economy in crisis,” he said. “This is not a crisis we sought – nor is it one we created. But it is one, under the President’s leadership, that we have answered. … We can and we will emerge more prosperous, stronger, wiser, and better prepared for the future. “
So even a former Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton is in full blown denial.
Guardian on March 13, 2009 at 12:52 PM
The communists are cutting taxes to improve their economy.
Boggle at the concept.
The communists are actually moving in the right direction on a lot of fronts; while we are moving towards them, in the wrong direction.
It’s pathetic.
lorien1973 on March 13, 2009 at 12:53 PM
/Moe Howard had understudies too…
Akzed on March 13, 2009 at 12:43 PM
Yeah, but they sucked.
Ed Morrissey on March 13, 2009 at 12:45 PM
Del Dolemonte on March 13, 2009 at 12:53 PM
I meant the understudies sucked. I wasn’t a big fan of the Stooges, but the originals were clearly better than what followed.
Ed Morrissey on March 13, 2009 at 12:54 PM
Moe was a socialist. I’ve hated the stooges ever since I learned that.
lorien1973 on March 13, 2009 at 12:55 PM
I’m with GarandFan — Summers would be a bad choice. He does not have the temperament that we need at this time. He has some personal demons (and I don’t mean the brouhaha over the women in science thing) that would be a real problem, particularly with such a weak group of people around him in the administration. He’s already nodded off in public (remember the incident at the “fiscal responsibility” summit?). Is that really what we want?
Y-not on March 13, 2009 at 12:55 PM
Woohoo, so you are basically saying I’ll see your dumbass and raise you three.
rockmom on March 13, 2009 at 12:56 PM
That explains everything!!!
Well, at least watch the ones from the 30s to remind yourself what the Great Depression was like – you know – just to prepare yourself for life under Obama.
TheBigOldDog on March 13, 2009 at 12:57 PM
“China’s premier didn’t say it in so many words, but the implied warning to Washington was blunt: Don’t devalue the dollar through reckless spending.”
They’re lecturing , and they’re right!
the_nile on March 13, 2009 at 12:58 PM
Applaud the art, not the artist.
TheBigOldDog on March 13, 2009 at 12:59 PM
Wouldn’t it help if the Treasury Secretary actually had a functioning comprehension of economics? Like how taxes and spending affect it all?
So, um, these understudies… likely that they’re cut from the same cloth as the administration.
So, um… does it matter who their pitcher is?
beatcanvas on March 13, 2009 at 12:59 PM
That “Thunk” is the sound of my lower jaw hitting my desk! Ed, that’s just….just…un-American! I’m not even going to ask how you feel about Popeye. :-)
Oldnuke on March 13, 2009 at 1:00 PM
Does Judd Gregg have the qualifications to be Treasury Secretary?
He was supposedly palatable once. If the administration is really serious about tackling the economy, wouldn’t it be terrific to be able to really draw on the best and brightest from both parties? Wouldn’t appointing a Republican help facilitate that?
Y-not on March 13, 2009 at 1:00 PM
Harriet Myers wasn’t even formally nominated, and John Yoo’s (bogga booga booga) high crime was being on the other side of a political issue than the Moonbats.
The trolls are getting desperate. Look! Over there!! Rush!!
Techie on March 13, 2009 at 1:02 PM
Who knew Obama was to the left of China?
faraway on March 13, 2009 at 1:03 PM
Geithner was brought in to remove tracks of Lehmanns collapse which he helped to engineer. Now that boat has sailed, they don’t want him anymore.
promachus on March 13, 2009 at 1:03 PM
W H A T!?!?!?!
What would
BarrySanta Clause be with out hisTimmyElf ….alexraye on March 13, 2009 at 1:03 PM
Did they pay their taxes?
Kini on March 13, 2009 at 1:03 PM
Geithner: Tax cheat, no ideas, no plan, no staff.
And they said McCain didn’t know economics?
B. bi-partisan for a change, B. Hussein. Give us Mitt Romney at Treasury, if he’ll take the job.
Steve Z on March 13, 2009 at 1:04 PM
I hope he keeps Little Timmy Taxcheat for a while longer.
I’m enjoying the show.
faraway on March 13, 2009 at 1:05 PM
PC continues to kill us. Summers should have had the job but “he speaks his mind” and is thrown under the bus. If I am drowning, I really don’t care who pulls me out…this guy can’t swim.
flyoverland on March 13, 2009 at 1:06 PM
OT – They are replaying Rush’s CPAC speech on his radio show right now.
That is all.
ladyingray on March 13, 2009 at 1:07 PM
I still think the talent pool is thin. True liberals have a tooth fairy concept of the economy–money just shows up under their pillows (or in their mailboxes or in their academic-, non-profit-, or government-job paychecks). These people line up for jobs in State, Justice, Education, and (drumroll) HHS. Treasury involves dealing with those nasty private-sector people.
As far as anyone who knows what he or she is doing, who want to be part of something on its way down? Being haled as part of a turnaround is one thing, but jumping on before Obama’s master plan has really cratered the economy probably has scared many away.
BuckeyeSam on March 13, 2009 at 1:10 PM
Must be hard to find a true Marxist that knows anything about the economy.
faraway on March 13, 2009 at 1:11 PM
You don’t like Geithner’s water wings?
BuckeyeSam on March 13, 2009 at 1:11 PM
Will do.
ladyingray on March 13, 2009 at 1:12 PM
Geithner – Nyuk, Nyuk, Nyuk
Rattner – Woob-Woob-Woob
Kini on March 13, 2009 at 1:12 PM
A friend reports chatter within the Obama administration that Tim Geithner was a bad choice for Treasury Secretary and that Quadrangle partner Steve Rattner (currently the car czar) was brought in partly to have a good relief pitcher on hand.Not buying that. This is just CYA.
This choice either represents poor judgment or poor judgment!
PrincipledPilgrim on March 13, 2009 at 1:13 PM
I’ve had all I can stands! I can’t stands no more!
BigD on March 13, 2009 at 1:14 PM
The Obama “administration” and the Democrat Congress are determined to repeat every possible failed leftwing experiment.
Because leftists can’t take responsibility for their own actions. That’s why they are leftists. Most adults grow out of that kind of thinking, but leftists do not.
It’s always someone else’s fault a brilliant leftwing social engineering experiment failed.
Lefties have been proven wrong time and time again on the economy, on crime, on cultural issues, etc., and nothing dents the lefty iron skull. Amazing.
NoDonkey on March 13, 2009 at 1:15 PM
They are useful only if you’re looking for ideas on how to deal with the Industrial Revolution in the latter part of the 19th century.
Other than that, they’re devoid of ideas of any relevance.
NoDonkey on March 13, 2009 at 1:17 PM
This would help explain why I have yet to get any Geithner signed currency…
myrenovations on March 13, 2009 at 1:17 PM
Nice ideas, but Obama has too much ego to turn to either of these guys. It’d be like the hasty teenager insisting on undertaking a task for which he’s clearly not ready, screwing it up, and having to turn to day to dig him out of a jam.
Beyond that, it’d undermine Obama’s worldview of the necessity to redistribute wealth.
BuckeyeSam on March 13, 2009 at 1:17 PM
One of the most morbid pieces of trivia about the Stooges is that when Shemp died of a heart attack in 1955, they stuck a body double in his place and used some old footage to make four more Stooges shorts before Joe Besser was hired.
I think that’s probably the best analogy for the current Tim Geithner situation (though, sadly, Mr. Besser passed on several years ago, so we can’t have Obama appointing him to do his schtick as the new Treasury Secretary).
jon1979 on March 13, 2009 at 1:17 PM
Me – among lots of folks. It was pretty clear that BigO listened to the MOST radical voices on the left. For some reason, many folks thought that meant he listened to all sides. But if you listen to socialists all day, and don’t listen to anyone else, how is that “all sides”? It was as clear as crystal that he’d be shockingly radical.
hawksruleva on March 13, 2009 at 1:23 PM
considering how thoroughly President HopeNChange and his peoples are f-ing up, I’m not surprised. I’m worried about my investments too.
The Chinese better be careful though. They don’t want to “mess with Joe Biden”.
mjk on March 13, 2009 at 1:30 PM
for getalife: you’re right, the depression is over, turbo tax tim is a genius, bambi is the Won & all is right with the world. the market went up slightly.
kelley in virginia on March 13, 2009 at 1:31 PM
Get ready to take down your trousers, bend over and grab your ankles:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123681860305802821.html
Some would call this “reparations”
drjohn on March 13, 2009 at 1:32 PM
it is bambi’s duty to protect & defend the Constitution so help him God. and then he can protect the Country. where in his oath is there anything about changing the financial structure of this country?
kelley in virginia on March 13, 2009 at 1:39 PM
I’m skeptical on anything that comes from Blodgett, still remembering all those bogus research reports from him during the dot-com bubble.
blue13326 on March 13, 2009 at 1:39 PM
Reparations? Chapelle already covered that.
http://www.comedycentral.com/videos/index.jhtml?videoId=24406
poplicola on March 13, 2009 at 1:41 PM
He listened to the far left socialists, he listened to the moderate socialists, he listened to the pragmatic socialists.
In Democratic circles, that qualifies as all sides.
MarkTheGreat on March 13, 2009 at 1:44 PM
Heh – Eraserhead is about to be r-r-r-r-r-r-rubbed out!
Logic on March 13, 2009 at 1:50 PM
Want to see what a real market panic looks like? Wait until the Chinese start dumping T-bills, setting off a stampede in the bond market. The Obama Depression will become the Obama Food Riots in about a month. We’ve sold an awful lot of stock in America, Inc. to finance that nasty Obama pork habit, and if that stock gets devalued into a junk bond, the whole system is going to come apart at the seams.
People often complain about trade deficits, or overdependence on foreign oil, as signs of American weakness, but I always thought the scale of foreign investments in real estate and bonds was a bigger problem lurking below the surface of the economy. My local news stations have been running stories about Chinese “foreclosure tourists” coming into our area by the busload, taking tours of foreclosure and short sale properties, and snapping them up like players in a Monopoly game. These are literally pieces of America being bought up as a commodity by foreign investors. There’s nothing inherently wrong with foreigners owning domestic real estate, or buying government bonds, but when it reaches a certain critical mass…
The drunken-sailor pork spending binge of 2008 puts an awfully huge bond-market club in the hands of the Chinese. It’s hard enough to see how a demoralized, worse-than-bankrupt America will deal with foreign crises, including Chinese adventurism. Now we get to worry about some apocalyptic backroom scene, in which the Chinese ambassador gives Obama his marching orders after telling him how capitalism works.
Doctor Zero on March 13, 2009 at 1:52 PM
Sure, Rattner will control the message.
onlineanalyst on March 13, 2009 at 2:07 PM
Summers would be a bad choice.
—-
He’s already nodded off in public (remember the incident at the “fiscal responsibility” summit?). Is that really what we want?
Hell yeah. I remember that distinctly, and it was just another of a million moments where one asks oneself “Why won’t this be on the nightly news? Imagine if a Republican were caught at this.”
George Orwell on March 13, 2009 at 2:32 PM
He’s already nodded off in public (remember the incident at the “fiscal responsibility” summit?). Is that really what we want?
George Orwell on March 13, 2009 at 2:32 PM
I would go to sleep also if I had to sit through something as stupid and worthless as that so called summit.
duff65 on March 13, 2009 at 2:39 PM
Talk about going to sleep… Recall The Unicorn’s press event where he sent people into “breakout groups” and basically holding taxpayer-funded college bull sessions? “Breakout groups?” What is this, a community college class in psychology or creative writing?
This single-horned douchebag should have stayed in the ivory towers where he belonged, boring students to death.
George Orwell on March 13, 2009 at 2:45 PM
Dow up 10 % this week.
Thanks Tim.
getalife on March 13, 2009 at 3:03 PM
What the hell is wrong with your math? Up from what, exactly? Being at its lowest point in over a decade. Is that good news to you? I suppose I’m not going out on a limb when I suggest you own no stocks.
anuts on March 13, 2009 at 5:03 PM
And not that I should expect you to explain yourself (I have never seen that happen), but what did Tim do exactly that you would thank him for?
anuts on March 13, 2009 at 5:06 PM
The reason why Geither was so qualified was because no one else has a father who worked with the Messiah’s Holy Mother at banks in Indonesia.
VinceP1974 on March 13, 2009 at 6:47 PM
this guy cant figure out his own taxes
yet i can?
I am doing them tomorrow you know that tax place on every
CORNER in america?
Your a lying cheating frigging moron and you should be in Jail..
I have been audited by the irs 3 times
they got TIred of auditing me..
Becauuse i kept getting more money BACK..
I keep real receipts not like the 700 pairs of underwear the clintons claimed …
I keep real records
and i use excell
Gee and i can do it..
but this frigging moron cant?
he needs to be in club gitmo maybe running the muslims finances and doing their taxes..
hell he couldnt do much worse..
jcila on March 14, 2009 at 1:19 PM