Buy Goldman? Buy Citigroup?

No kidding. You run into the quarters, you rally when puts are bought (see yesterday's piece on Goldman and puts), you know that you are going to run into resistance and ugliness.

Now, let's understand how things play out.

First, the whisper on Goldman Sachs (GS - commentary - Trade Now) was obviously a set up. I could have put out a $7 number to really make the set-up ugly. Remember that I said that Meredith Whitney would be made "right" and will turn out "right" for now. That's what has to happen. There is no way that people are going to buy this one up $5 from Tuesday. Total set-up.

I didn't want Citigroup (C - commentary - Trade Now) to be over $5, because this is a book value, not an earnings story, and the book value could not move enough to make it so that it would warrant buying up to the $5 and change price. Last night on Mad Money, I got a call about someone who owned Bank of America (BAC - commentary - Trade Now)and Citgroup, and I said sell Citi, because it is above $5.That's the way the Street works. You sell what's run. You buy what hasn't run. You don't repeal that on Dow 10,000.

Now let's speak longer term, not that anyone cares.

Citigroup's on the mend. The government owns a big stake. The president should demand that the stake be sold, so the money can be used to help small business. Is this so hard? It's ludicrous. Treasury should demand that all of the companies that have TARP money either sell equity to pay it back, or it will raise the terms at which it lent the money. I am not kidding. This TARP money must be returned in order to get the rest of the money moving. That said, it means that Citigroup should be heavy, as the government has to make a move.

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At the time of publication, Cramer was long GS and BAC. Jim Cramer is co-founder and chairman of TheStreet.com. He contributes daily market commentary for TheStreet.com's sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO. Outside contributing columnists for TheStreet.com and RealMoney.com, including Cramer, may, from time to time, write about stocks in which they have a position. In such cases, appropriate disclosure is made. To see his personal portfolio and find out what trades Cramer will make before he makes them, sign up for Action Alerts PLUS. Watch Cramer on "Mad Money" weeknights on CNBC. To order Cramer's newest book -- "Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life: Get Rich, Stay Rich (Make Your Kids Even Richer)," click here. Click here to order "Mad Money: Watch TV, Get Rich," click here to order "Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World," click here to get "You Got Screwed!" and click here for Cramer's autobiography, "Confessions of a Street Addict." While he cannot provide personalized investment advice or recommendations, he appreciates your feedback and invites you to send comments by clicking here.

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