Geithner Extends TARP but Narrows Focus

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has decided to tack on another nine months to the government's controversial $700 billion bailout program. In a letter Wednesday to the heads of the Senate and House, Geithner said he is formally extending the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), which was set to expire at the end of this year, through October 3, 2010. The Treasury secretary assured lawmakers, though, that any new commitments made next year would be limited to housing, small business lending, and the securitization market.