U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner Tuesday voiced disagreement with Standard & Poor's negative outlook for the U.S. AAA credit rating, saying political prospects to bring down long-term deficits were improving.
"No, actually, I think things are better than they've been if you want to think about the prospects for improving our long-term fiscal position," Geithner told CNBC television.
"If you're looking very carefully at what's happening in Washington you see people on both sides -- democrats and republicans -- agreeing with the president that we have to put in place some reforms now to bring down our long-term deficits," he added.
His comments followed Standard & Poor's move on Monday to slap a negative outlook on the United States' prized AAA credit rating unless the Obama administration and Congress find a way to slash the yawning federal budget deficit within two years.
