[dweck]

President Barack Obama has "complete confidence" in Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, and any suggestion he bungled over the AIG bonuses storm is "unfair" the White House said Tuesday.

Forgive me, but isn't this akin to "You're doing a heckuva job, Geithy?"

 

[Ender's Mom]

As far as I'm concerned... both administrations in charge when this bailout money has been handed out have dropped the ball. They cannot cry out in shock at these bonuses when they didn't put restrictions on the money in the first place and just handed it over hoping the financial industry would deal responsibly with it.

 

[Golfgirlrobin]

As far as I'm concerned... both administrations in charge when this bailout money has been handed out have dropped the ball. They cannot cry out in shock at these bonuses when they didn't put restrictions on the money in the first place and just handed it over hoping the financial industry would deal responsibly with it.

What she said.

 

[dweck]

I am dumbstruck to think that nobody -- NOBODY -- investigated the ins and outs of the contracts that now call for AIG fatcats to get bonuses. Before forking over our tax dollars.

This would be like buying a used car, but never lifting the hood in advance of pmt. And then being shocked to find no engine.

 

[labby]

Where are the congressional hearings and the putdowns on national TV like the Senators did with the auto industry? Double standard.

 

[Ender's Mom]

I am dumbstruck to think that nobody -- NOBODY -- investigated the ins and outs of the contracts that now call for AIG fatcats to get bonuses. Before forking over our tax dollars.

This would be like buying a used car, but never lifting the hood in advance of pmt. And then being shocked to find no engine.

Really... you're shocked? I'm not. The news I listen to/read called this out last year.

You're shocked that politicians were lazy and trusted people who contribute to their campaigns?

That's like Jim Cramer on Thursday going "they lied to me!!!"... Jon Stewart "really?... a CEO lied to you about how well their company is doing?"

 

[dweck]

Okay maybe not dumbstruck.

Substitute pissedoff.

 

[jzgrlduff]

I predict a 12-pager...

 

[Golfgirlrobin]

Where are the congressional hearings and the putdowns on national TV like the Senators did with the auto industry? Double standard.

The story just broke in a really substantial way and already there's a Senator calling for the heads of these companies to commit suicide. If there's a double standard, it's working in the car company's favor at this point. I don't remember anybody suggesting they take their favorite car, turn on the engine and close the garage door.

 

[Ender's Mom]

The story just broke and already there's a Senator calling for the heads of these companies to commit suicide. If there's a double standard, it's working in the car company's favor at this point. I don't remember anybody suggesting they take their favorite car, turn on the engine and close the garage door.

I read that.

It's kinda shocking even though these people piss me off enough for me to kinda like the idea.

It will never happen though... none of those guys have any honor.

 

[luke from georgia]

from what i just read on CNN, it sounds like efforts are being made to try and get the bonus money back.

 

[Lexis Mom]

Okay, I know this is going come across as totally naive.

I am guessing these bonus are to some extent performance related. Keeping that in mind, can someone explain how in good conscience (or any conscience for that matter) the big wigs at AIG could accept these bonuses knowing how badly they f'ed the company. Perhaps that is just it, these big wig fat cats.... HAVE NO CONSCIENCE WHATSOEVER OR THEY JUST DON'T GIVE A ****!!

 

[Hunter]

Auto companies received "Loans" with the intention of being paid back(Will it happen?)

AIG received cash money - no loan, no intention of being paid back

 

[Dukesdad]

investigated the ins and outs of the contracts that now call for AIG fatcats to get bonuses.

What about AGI sending bailout money overseas to bail out banks in Europe. I'm sure the Europeans will now just adore us for that. That amount makes those bonuses look like chicken change. That's what everybody should be screaming about.

 

[theoconbrio]

I believe they tried to justify them not as performance bonuses, but as "retention bonuses." The logic being, I guess, that as badly as they screwed things up, their work was so complicated that they were the only people who understood how it worked. But then it turned out that a bunch of the people who got the money LEFT THE COMPANY!

Unreal. What I don't understand is how Larry Summers can go on about how these are legal contracts that have to be honored, when the car companies were forced to renegotiate their union contracts.

 

[MidwestGirl]

The song "Take the money and run" comes to mind

 

[luke from georgia]

the legal contracts for bonuses defense doesn't work for me either. what would have happened if the company had gone bankrupt? where would the bonus money come from in that senario?

the retention defense is laughable. not only is it a bad idea to try and keep the people who helped cause this mess in the first place, but there was cleary not enough of a penalty (if any) for those that would take the money and run.

 

[Snowflake]

Forgive me, but isn't this akin to "You're doing a heckuva job, Geithy?"

Are you talking about the head of our IRS who can't even use Turbo Tax?

Let's see, he can't use Turbo Tax (a consumer level program) correctly which results in him not paying all of his taxes (wink, wink), but then they expect him to oversee billions and billions and billions and billions in bailout money?

Why does this mess with AIG not surprise me at all?

 

[Di]

Are you talking about the head of our IRS who can't even use Turbo Tax?

Let's see, he can't use Turbo Tax (a consumer level program) correctly which results in him not paying all of his taxes (wink, wink), but then they expect him to oversee billions and billions and billions and billions in bailout money?

Why does this mess with AIG not surprise me at all?

Count me in on one of those that is not surprised at all- pissed off, yes- surprised absolutely not!!

 

[Golfgirlrobin]

What it really comes down to is that this is what happens when government does something in a huge hurry. "It's a crisis and the world will come to an end!!!!!" Nobody cared enough to provide any oversight or guidlines for this money because it had to be done right now.

Whether you agree with him or not, Obama used the same tactic to sell the stimulas package. It's a crisis, it has to be done right now, no time to read or discuss. Prepare yourselves for this same story appearing on almost a weekly basis as more of the stimulas money gets spent.

There's just a certain percentage that is going to get pissed away because everybody was in such a hurry. Accept that this is part of the deal or you're going to make yourself crazy.