Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Fiscal Reform:Geithner's Global Optimism

In the view of U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner,the journey to fiscal responsibility is well underway worldwide.In the U.S.,Mr.Geithner said,the important thing for the economy now is to lock in reforms to bring down the long term deficit.It's not surprising that average people are sceptical of Washington.I'm confident we will start the process.I think it's achievable.There's an emerging consensus on how much we have to do-four trillion in cuts-and the time frame.
The more details you have,the more credible it's gonna be.Faced with enormous challenge,Washington has always come together.You have to do it in a balanced,comprehensive way.There's no way to do this without changing our tax code.Life's about alternatives.We need a balanced,comprehensive package that will add modestly to the burden of the most fortunate Americans.
We have to earn the confidence of investors,but I didn't have to reassure foreign investors when Standard&Poor's downgraded their U.S. credit outlook to negative.We don't know how much is gonna be possible,but we have good prospects of laying down a foundation.
For its part,Europe is doing incredibly difficult reforms.The leaders of Europe have said they will do whatever is necessary to address the sovereign debt issue,and they're making some progress,in Timothy Geithner's estimation.
Before assuming his cabinet post,Mr.Geithner was president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York,where he played an integral role in dealing with the financial crisis,assisting his predecessor at Treasury,Hank Paulson.Although initially disliked by some in Congress for mistakes he made on his income taxes some years ago,he has developed a decent working relationship with lawmakers over time.

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