By Ian McKendry
WASHINGTON (MNI) – The economy is healing but there are still many
challenges ahead, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Monday.
In prepared remarks for a public policy conference hosted by the
Congressional Hispanic Institute, Geithner said of the economic recovery
that, “We know it’s going to take more time than any of us would like to
put the damage behind us.”
Geithner said policymakers in Washington still need to do more,
reiterating that the first order of business should be passing the small
business jobs bill, which would cut taxes for small businesses and make
loans more available.
Geithner also called on Congress — back in session Monday — to
move quickly to extend the middle class tax cuts.
As for the Bush era tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, Geithner
said the U.S cannot afford them anymore and that they have had little
impact on job creation.
“We can’t afford to go back to the policies of the past decade when
we passed large tax cuts for the wealthiest American’s without paying
for them,” Geithner said.
Last week, President Obama outlined a number of new investment
proposals to boost a flagging recovery, including $50 billion worth of
infrastructure projects to help create jobs and strengthen long term
growth.
“Investing in rebuilding American infrastructure is good economic
policy,” Geithner said.
“We won’t succeed if Washington doesn’t find a way to provide more
support for the middle class and for investments by businesses in
America,” he concluded.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
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