Treasury Sec. Geithner Vows: No 'Fiscal Cliff' Agreement Without Raising Taxes on the Rich

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Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner vowed there will be no deal to avert the coming "fiscal cliff" that does not include raising tax rates on the wealthy.

"There's not going to be an agreement without rates going up," Geithner on CNN's "State of the Union."

Asked whether that meant the White House was willing to go over the cliff at the end of the year -- triggering sharp tax hikes and deep spending cuts -- if Republicans stand firm on not raising rates on top earners, Geithner was resolute.

"If Republicans are not willing to let rates go back up -- and we think they should go back to the Clinton levels, a time when the American economy was doing exceptionally well -- then there will not be an agreement," he said.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) told "Fox News Sunday" he was "flabbergasted" when Geithner outlined President Barack Obama’s budget deal offer last week, which included $1.6 trillion in increased tax revenues and a $50-billion economic stimulus program.