Published: Tuesday, 15 Sep 2009 | 8:13 AM ET

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President Barack Obama can return the U.S. budget situation to a sustainable one without breaking his pledge to not raise taxes on Americans making less than $250,000, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Tuesday.

Photo by: Pete Souza Timothy Geithner

"We can get our fiscal house in order. We can go back, as a country, to the point where we're living within our means without violating that basic commitment," Geithner told ABC's "Good Morning America" program.

"It's his (Obama's) commitment and he's very committed to that."

Geithner also said the government would work to unwind its investments in financial institutions and other companies as quickly as possible, but it would likely take longer to sell off its major stakes in General Motors and Chrysler.

"We're not going to keep a penny in the financial system or in the U.S. economy longer than we think is absolutely necessary," Geithner told ABC.

Asked if the government would be out of the auto business by next year, Geithner said, "I think it's going to take longer than that just to be honest and realistic."

He said the government had not yet made a judgement on whether to extend new investments under the $700 billion bailout funds beyond the end of the year, and will look carefully at a "range of programs" funded by economic stimulus for temporary extensions, including a first-time homebuyer tax credit.

Geithner said Congress would "very likely" extend unemployment benefits and the Treasury would look carefully at new programs that could help foster growth in the economy.

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