House passes the “Pay for performance” bill – 10 RINOs vote for it

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill to approved legislation to curb “excessive” employee pay at financial firms that receive government bailout funds, a measure that could supplant an earlier effort to heavily tax executive bonuses according to Reuters:

The bill, which passed on a 247-171 vote, would give the U.S. Treasury broad powers to prohibit “unreasonable and excessive” compensation and bonuses that are not based on performance standards.

The new curbs would apply to all employees, not just executives, of firms that have received capital investments from the Treasury’s $700 billion financial rescue fund. The standards also would cover compensation paid to an employee after leaving a firm or before joining it.

Even more surprising according to Malkin’s post is that Eric Cantor pulled an Obama and voted “present”. WTF is up with that?

April 1, 2009 · Filed Under AIG

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Glenn Beck DESTROYS Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal over AIG Bonus fiasco

The Glenn Beck show is quickly becoming my favorite show on the FOX News Network. The Hannity show is still great, but something about the Glenn Beck show is really begining to get me interested in watching (except of course with those fake crying moments). O’Reilly and his arrogant self can concerntrate on spamming his book on his TV show. Anyway, today’s Glenn Beck so featured a ’special’ guest. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who has been part of the RICHunt against those AIG execs who recieved bonuses. Beck asked Bluemnetal several times: Under what law are you going after the AIG bonuses? And the only response that Blumenthal could come up with was: Because they are undeserving of it. Beck also asked the Connecticut Attorney General, why hasn’t he gone after Chris Dodd? Blumenthal said he doesn’t have the authority to go after Chris Dodd because he was a “federal official”. Michelle Malkin is right on the money with her statement: Blumenthal gives new meaning to AIG: Asshats In Government. Enjoy the video:

March 30, 2009 · Filed Under AIG

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Jake DeSantis to AIG, Liddy – I QUIT! / The AIG mess expands

The fallout from the Barney Frank/Congress, Hussein Obama and Media RICHhunt against AIG execs is coming home to roost. The following is a letter sent on Tuesday by Jake DeSantis, an executive vice president of the American International Group’s financial products unit who worked for the hefty sum of $1 per year, plus bonuses to help AIG get out of its financial mess. The letter is to Edward M. Liddy, the chief executive of A.I.G from The New York Liberal/Obama Times who didn’t defend anyone aside from the “i’m afraid for their safety” remark to the Banking Queen:

DEAR Mr. Liddy,

It is with deep regret that I submit my notice of resignation from A.I.G. Financial Products. I hope you take the time to read this entire letter. Before describing the details of my decision, I want to offer some context:

I am proud of everything I have done for the commodity and equity divisions of A.I.G.-F.P. I was in no way involved in — or responsible for — the credit default swap transactions that have hamstrung A.I.G. Nor were more than a handful of the 400 current employees of A.I.G.-F.P. Most of those responsible have left the company and have conspicuously escaped the public outrage.

After 12 months of hard work dismantling the company — during which A.I.G. reassured us many times we would be rewarded in March 2009 — we in the financial products unit have been betrayed by A.I.G. and are being unfairly persecuted by elected officials. In response to this, I will now leave the company and donate my entire post-tax retention payment to those suffering from the global economic downturn. My intent is to keep none of the money myself.

I take this action after 11 years of dedicated, honorable service to A.I.G. I can no longer effectively perform my duties in this dysfunctional environment, nor am I being paid to do so. Like you, I was asked to work for an annual salary of $1, and I agreed out of a sense of duty to the company and to the public officials who have come to its aid. Having now been let down by both, I can no longer justify spending 10, 12, 14 hours a day away from my family for the benefit of those who have let me down.

You and I have never met or spoken to each other, so I’d like to tell you about myself. I was raised by schoolteachers working multiple jobs in a world of closing steel mills. My hard work earned me acceptance to M.I.T., and the institute’s generous financial aid enabled me to attend. I had fulfilled my American dream.

I started at this company in 1998 as an equity trader, became the head of equity and commodity trading and, a couple of years before A.I.G.’s meltdown last September, was named the head of business development for commodities. Over this period the equity and commodity units were consistently profitable — in most years generating net profits of well over $100 million. Most recently, during the dismantling of A.I.G.-F.P., I was an integral player in the pending sale of its well-regarded commodity index business to UBS. As you know, business unit sales like this are crucial to A.I.G.’s effort to repay the American taxpayer.

The profitability of the businesses with which I was associated clearly supported my compensation. I never received any pay resulting from the credit default swaps that are now losing so much money. I did, however, like many others here, lose a significant portion of my life savings in the form of deferred compensation invested in the capital of A.I.G.-F.P. because of those losses. In this way I have personally suffered from this controversial activity — directly as well as indirectly with the rest of the taxpayers.

I have the utmost respect for the civic duty that you are now performing at A.I.G. You are as blameless for these credit default swap losses as I am. You answered your country’s call and you are taking a tremendous beating for it.

But you also are aware that most of the employees of your financial products unit had nothing to do with the large losses. And I am disappointed and frustrated over your lack of support for us. I and many others in the unit feel betrayed that you failed to stand up for us in the face of untrue and unfair accusations from certain members of Congress last Wednesday and from the press over our retention payments, and that you didn’t defend us against the baseless and reckless comments made by the attorneys general of New York and Connecticut.

March 25, 2009 · Filed Under AIG

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Chris Fraud, err Dodd admits to AIG bonus protection loophole he put into the original porkulus!

The truth comes out, slowly but surely. Senator Chris Dodd finally admitted to CNN that he was infact the one responsible for adding the bonus loophole into the stimulus package that permitted AIG and other companies that received bailout funds to pay bonuses. This is a complete 360 (to use a CNN term) from Tuesday, when Dodd flat out denied to CNN that he had anything to do with the loophole. But its not Dodd’s fault (according to Dodd). He now says The Treasury Department was responsible for inserting exemptions into the stimulus bill that allowed bailout recipients to receive bonuses.

March 18, 2009 · Filed Under AIG, Chris Dodd

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Washington hypocrite theater – The AIG comedy show – An oscar worthy performance

Michelle Malkin has a syndicated column today looks at the award-winning performances of Washington hypocrites outraged by the AIG entitlement beast they nurtured through four massive bailout infusions. BTW, you can also watch the Michelle Malkin on the Glenn Beck show video from earlier on Wednesday.

March 18, 2009 · Filed Under AIG, Corruption, Democrats, congress

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Speaking of executive bonuses, where are the questions on Fannie an Freddy?

With all the talk, and whining regarding AIG’s bonuses that they are contractly obligated to pay out, which the Hussein idiots such as tax cheat Geithner should have known about in the first place, wheres all the uproar over the Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac bonus packages? According to their annual report, (h/t Hotair), Freddie Mac has pretty nice retention bonus plan built into its operation for the next year. Eligibility includes all of the senior and executive VPs. It comes in four payouts, and only the last has any connection to company performance. So Barney Frank, when do the questions begin about these bonuses? Oh BTW, the banking queen himself Barney Frank rather flippantly dismissed the death threats against AIG executives. Edward Liddy CEO of AIG read a threat (According to Michelle Malkin):

All of the people should be executed with piano wire around their neck.

After which Frank smirked, “I am not persuaded:”. What if this same threat had been that homosexuals should be strangled with piano wire? Wouldn’t Barney be calling on the FBI to find the culprit and hang him/her?

March 18, 2009 · Filed Under AIG, Barney Frank

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The Japanese approach toward accepting responsibility for AIG? Executives should kill themselves!

Nothing against Japan or their people, but last I checked, this is still (at least somewhat) America isn’t it? Well, maybe not so much anymore as Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley suggested that AIG executives should take a Japanese approach toward accepting responsibility for the collapse of the insurance giant by resigning or killing themselves.

Can’t bash Democrats here, but WTF! Heres a quote from the MyWay article

The Republican lawmaker’s harsh comments came during an interview with Cedar Rapids, Iowa, radio station WMT on Monday. They echo remarks he has made in the past about corporate executives and public apologies, but went further in suggesting suicide.

“I suggest, you know, obviously, maybe they ought to be removed,” Grassley said. “But I would suggest the first thing that would make me feel a little bit better toward them if they’d follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I’m sorry, and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide.

“And in the case of the Japanese, they usually commit suicide before they make any apology.”

Grassley spokesman Casey Mills said the senator isn’t calling for AIG executives to kill themselves, but said those who accept tax dollars and spend them on travel and bonuses do so irresponsibly.

“Senator Grassley has said for some time now that generally speaking, executives who make a mess of their companies should apologize, as Japanese executives do,” Mills said. “He says the Japanese might even go so far as to commit suicide but he doesn’t want U.S. executives to do that.”

The senator’s remarks added to a chorus of public outrage over the disclosure that AIG intends to pay its executives $165 million in bonuses after taking billions in federal bailout money. President Barack Obama lambasted the insurance giant for “recklessness and greed” on Monday and pledged to try to block payment of the bonuses.

Being that this did come from a braindead Republican, I’m sure the media will be all over this story.

March 17, 2009 · Filed Under AIG

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George Stephanopoulos – more interested in McCain’s daughter spats than his AIG flipflopping

George Stephanopoulos of ABC ‘News’ conducted a Twitter interview with Senator John McCain of Arizona. The last week or so has been dominated by McCain’s “large” daugter going on a whining spree against Ann Coulter, Laura Ingrahm, etc. Its also ironic that Ms. McCain now writers for the Daily Beast (another liberal owned website), yet she claims to be a Republican like her daddy. During the twitter interview, Stephanopoulous was more concerned with McCain’s daughter’s spats than with nailing McCain on his AIG flip-flopping. Typical LMSM.

March 17, 2009 · Filed Under AIG, Liberal Media Bias

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