Treasury Secretary says Bailout Right Balance - Watchdog Disagrees

(CBS/AP) Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner defended the bank rescue program devised by the Obama administration as the International Monetary Fund predicted U.S. financial institutions could lose $2.7 trillion from the global credit crisis.

Geithner testified Tuesday before the rescue plan's Congressional Oversight Panel. He faced a battery of questions over the Treasury's public-private partnership investment plan to rid financial institutions of their troubled assets.

His testimony came in the wake of a watchdog agency report that warned administration initiatives could increasingly expose taxpayers to losses and make the government more vulnerable to fraud.

Geithner, in prepared testimony, said the new plan "strikes the right balance." - CBS News Story