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Report: Tim Geithner considering leaving Treasury Department

Amanda Carey Contributor
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Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has suggested he will be leaving the Obama administration once a deal on the debt limit is reached, according to Bloomberg News.

According to three anonymous sources, Geithner, 49, has informed the White House he’s thinking about moving on, although he has yet to make an official decision. He will not make any official announcement until after Congress and President Obama reach a deal on raising the debt ceiling, the report says. (President Obama’s war on facts in Wednesday’s press conference)

Geithner himself has warned that the federal government will default on its debt if a deal is not reached by August 2. Talks between Republican and Democrat members of Congress, and President Obama are essentially at an impasse.

If Geithner chooses to leave the administration, he will complete the full turnover of Obama’s original economic team. Former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers Christina Romer, National Economic Council Director Larry Summers, and Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag have all already left from the administration. Current CEA Chair Austan Goolsbee also recently announced his decision to leave this August.

UPDATE: Geithner responded to reports of his rumored departure, Thursday night, by saying he planned to remain at the job for the “foreseeable future.

“I live for this work. It’s the only thing I’ve ever done. I believe in it,” he told former President Bill Clinton at an event Thursday night.

The Treasury Secretary also noted that his son had decided to finish high school in New York, so “I’m going to be commuting for a while.”