Free Republic

Timothy Geithner, a key player in the U.S. government’s 2008 bailout of American International Group Inc., is due back in court Wednesday in a trial of a lawsuit filed by the insurance giant’s former CEO over the handling of the rescue. On Tuesday, Geithner affirmed his belief that the bailout was needed to avert disaster for the financial system. Geithner was president of the New York Federal Reserve at the time of the rescue and later Treasury secretary. …

The latest development in the Libor-manipulation scandal is that the banks weren’t really fixing the price of the key interest rate in total secret — US regulators were aware of the sleazy activities at the time, and seemed to have done nothing. Which should surprise no one. I can’t tell you how much federal officials knew about the activities of Barclay’s, JPMorgan, Citigroup and the other big banks at the center of the maelstrom. In coming weeks, both Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner will inevitably discuss the mess when they appear before Congress. Bernanke testifies...

Network's Andrea Mitchell and Chuck Todd reporting Obama will name his economic team Monday. 1:55pm UPDATE: The New York Times is reporting that Sen. Hillary Clinton has decided to quit her Senate seat and accept the post of Secretary of State, according to two Clinton confidants. Senior advisers to President-elect Barack Obama told the Times this morning that the offer had not been formally accepted and no announcement would be made until after Thanksgiving, but said they were convinced the deal was ready to be sealed. NBC News is reporting that President-elect Barack Obama will roll out his economic team...