[Phones ringing]
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Treasury, Timothy Geithner, please hold."
"Hello, this is Timothy Geithner, thank you for holding, how may I help you? Oh, hello, Congressman. You need someone from Treasury for a Banking Committee hearing? I'm sorry, Congressman, but right now, I'm the only one here and someone has to answer the phone. But I'll send someone over just as soon as we get someone through the vetting process. Thanks, Congressman, goodbye."
"Hello, this is Timothy Geithner, thank you for holding, how may I help you? Oh, good morning, Mr. President. Yes, I'm working on that list of appointees, but we keep having problems with, um, people not being fully forthcoming on all of their taxes... Uh, yes, sir, that does seem to be going around, doesn't it? No, sir, none of these jobs are as easy as we thought they were. I'll keep at it, sir. Maybe I can get a deputy secretary or two in the next week or so. It's not like the economy's really doing anything right now, so it doesn't matter too much, right? Thank you, sir, goodbye."
"Hello, this is Timothy Geithner, thank you for holding, how may I help you? Oh, good morning, Senator... The banking bailout plan? Well, sir, that's something that one of my deputy treasury secretaries would be working on, if I could ever get one confirmed. We had two drop out just the other day.
"I don't understand it, Senator: We have this exciting new administration, all of this hope and change, and all of the brightest and best seem to be taking one look at the problems we're facing and deciding that they'd rather stay in the private sector... Yes, Senator, very discouraging. Thank you, Senator, goodbye."
"Hello, this is Timothy Geithner, thank you for holding, how may I help you? New York Times? Oh, things are going great here at Treasury, just great! Couldn't be better!"
[Puts phone aside, fakes another voice]
Fake voice: "Mr. Geithner, we have the President on the other line."
"Oh, sorry, I'm going to have to go now, but we'll get back to you real soon. 'Bye!"
