Forty-two percent (42%) of Americans say Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has done a poor job handling the credit crisis and federal bailout programs, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Twenty percent (20%) rate Geithner’s performance in these areas as good or excellent. But 16% aren’t sure how he’s doing.

These findings are unchanged from a survey in March just after passage of the controversial $787-billion economic stimulus plan and the disclosure that insurance giant American International Group (AIG) had paid its executives $165 million in bonuses after receiving a $170-billion taxpayer bailout to stay in business. Geithner was aware of the bonuses and did little or nothing to stop them.

Investors feel a bit more strongly: 47% say Geithner has done a poor job, while 24% say his handling of the credit crisis and the bailouts has been good or excellent.

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Ironically, the longer he serves as Treasury secretary, it seems the less the public knows about Geithner, even as there are growing calls from both the political left and right for him to resign.

Forty-one percent (41%) of Americans now say they don’t know what they think about Geithner, down from 31% in two earlier surveys this year.

Unchanged are the 24% who have at least a somewhat favorable opinion of Geithner, with seven percent (7%) who view him very favorably. Thirty-five percent (35%) regard him unfavorably, including 22% whose view is very unfavorable.

Twenty-seven percent (27%) of investors have a favorable opinion of Geithner, while 38% view him unfavorably. But again the emotion is on the side of his critics: Just nine percent (9%) of investors see the Treasury secretary in a very favorable light, but 26% have a very unfavorable view of him.

Given his service in a Democratic administration, it’s no surprise that Republicans are more than twice as likely as Democrats to think Geithner is doing a poor job – 60% to 26%. A plurality (43%) of adults not affiliated with either party agree.

While Republicans and unaffiliateds are more likely to have an unfavorable opinion of Geithner, Democrats are more closely divided: 33% have a favorable view, but 26% do not.

Geithner’s numbers are not helped by the fact that the economy is the top issue for voters. In the latest Rasmussen Consumer Index, only nine percent (9%) of adults nationwide give the U.S. economy good or excellent ratings while 56% say the economy is in poor shape.

Democrats and unaffiliated voters are more likely to be unemployed than Republicans.

Most Americans have consistently been skeptical of the bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler to and of the financial sector.

One-out-of-two Americans (50%) lack confidence in the U.S. banking system, down from a high for the year of 57% in February.

While the administration and the Federal Reserve Board are moving closer to regulating compensation at major banks and bailed-out financial firms, most Americans have reservations about how far the government should go.

Fifty percent (50%) say interest rates on their credit cards have been raised in the past six months, as Congress seeks to limit the ability of banks to raise those rates.

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