Brownback Votes 'No' on Geithner Confirmation

Press Release

BROWNBACK VOTES 'NO' ON GEITHNER CONFIRMATION

Says the nation needs a more qualified person to head the Treasury

U.S. Senator Sam Brownback today announced that he will vote 'no' on the confirmation of Timothy Geithner to serve as Secretary of the Treasury.

"For several reasons, today I voted 'no' vote on the confirmation of Timothy Geithner to be Secretary of the Treasury," said Brownback. "Undoubtedly, the U.S. Treasury Secretary has always been an important cabinet position. However, as America now faces unprecedented economic challenges, it is especially important that we have the most competent and qualified individual running the Treasury Department."

The Senate today voted to confirm Timothy Geithner, President Obama's nominee to head the U.S. Treasury.

Brownback continued, "I am concerned about Geithner's tenure at the New York Fed, where he acted partly as overseer and regulator during a time in which speculative excesses and risk-taking sowed the seeds of our current economic situation. As President of the New York Fed, one of Mr. Geithner's most important responsibilities was to regulate and prevent collapses of systemically important banks. Having been in his position since 2003, Mr. Geithner was responsible for watching the big financial institutions precisely at the time when they acted most irresponsibly and made decisions that led to our current crisis. By Mr. Geithner's own admission, in response to questions at his confirmation hearing, his efforts 'were inadequate.'

"Furthermore, Timothy Geithner's failure to pay self employment taxes as well as the other tax 'errors' is inexcusable for someone who will serve as Secretary of the Treasury. Making such a tax errors as Geithner made is quite exceptional for someone who should be well-versed in very complicated financial strategies used on Wall Street. While Geithner testified that his errors were honest mistakes, the evidence suggests that it was made quite clear to him that he was liable to pay the self-employment taxes he failed to pay. Geithner's explanations for his 'errors' simply do not pass muster for someone who is being entrusted to oversee the tax system and to oversee the process of returning stability to our nation's financial system and economy."

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