Geithner's Plan

It looks like old habits won’t be dying hard in Washington: According to the rescue plan to be outlined by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Monday, banks will not be mandated to increase lending. Rather, the plan is to create a much-debated “bad bank” (though Treasury is hoping it won’t be called that) in order to take bank’s most toxic assets off their hands. According to The New York Times, “Obama administration officials say they have rejected nationalizing institutions by taking large ownership stakes. They also will not immediately seek additional money from Congress beyond the $350 billion left in the TARP fund.”