| Author | Message | ||
     Chrishayden "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Chrishayden Post Number: 7827 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A |
The Republicans just got their commercial for the 2010 elections (for which campaigning has begun, by the way). Hope Obama didn't know anythng about that. But that's bad, too. You either stupid or criminal. Oh well. This is all in the game. | ||
| Cynique "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Cynique Post Number: 13585 Registered: 01-2004 Rating: N/A |
I'd be willing to bet all of the CEOS and bonus recipients of these failing companies are Republicans. | ||
| Chrishayden "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Chrishayden Post Number: 7829 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A |
I'd be willing to cover that bet. There is no shame in their game. | ||
| Chrishayden "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Chrishayden Post Number: 7830 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: |
This may be why: Obama Received a $101,332 Bonus from AIG March 17, 3:01 PM · 492 comments ShareThis Feed AP Photo/Ron EdmondsSenator Barack Obama received a $101,332 bonus from American International Group in the form of political contributions according to Opensecrets.org. The two biggest Congressional recipients of bonuses from the A.I.G. are - Senators Chris Dodd and Senator Barack Obama. The A.I.G. Financial Products affiliate of A.I.G. gave out $136,928, the most of any AIG affiliate, in the 2008 cycle. I would note that A.I.G.’s financial products division is the unit that wrote trillions of dollars’ worth of credit-default swaps and "misjudged" the risk. The Washington Post reports a "mob effect" at A.I.G financial products division: A tidal wave of public outrage over bonus payments swamped American International Group yesterday. Hired guards stood watch outside the suburban Connecticut offices of AIG Financial Products, the division whose exotic derivatives brought the insurance giant to the brink of collapse last year. Inside, death threats and angry letters flooded e-mail inboxes. Irate callers lit up the phone lines. Senior managers submitted their resignations. Some employees didn't show up at all. With the anger and rage that is being exhibited against A.I.G., perhaps the bonuses Obama received from A.I.G. explain Obama's A.I.G crocodile tears. Now that the Wall street Journal has revealed that A.I.G. paid bonuses of $1 million or more to 73 employees, it's time to ask if recipients of A.I.G. "bonuses," including President Obama, will give what now ought to be taxpayer money back? | ||
| Libralind2 AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Libralind2 Post Number: 1204 Registered: 09-2004 Rating: N/A |
COSTA MESA, Calif. -- President Barack Obama said he will take the blame for bonuses being paid at American International Group Inc. if it will settle an intense finger pointing under way over how such payments were possible at a company that has received tremendous taxpayer aid. Barack Obama "Washington is all in a tizzy and everybody is pointing fingers at each other and saying it's their fault, the Democrats' fault, the Republicans' fault," he said at a town hall meeting Wednesday. "Listen, I'll take responsibility. I'm the President." He also make clear that it isn't really his fault. "We didn't grant these contracts," he said. But he added: "So for everybody in Washington who's busy scrambling, trying to figure out how to blame somebody else, just go ahead and talk to me, because it's my job to make sure that we fix these messes, even if I don't make them." The comments were an effort to change the subject, which has engulfed Washington this week, and pivot to his push to overhaul financial regulations that govern the system and that many blame for the underlying problems. "We've got to make sure that we've got regulations that don't allow companies to take these huge risks that are so big that they can sort of hold us hostage," he said. He came west to Orange County, Calif., a state and a region hard hit by the recession, and found both the climate and the conversation a lot friendlier than it is in the nation's capital. A cheering crowd applauded his every sentiment. On Thursday, he plans another town hall meeting in Los Angeles, where he'll be introduced by California's Republican governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and a tour of a facility that develops batteries for electric cars. He'll also appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," the first appearance by a sitting president on a late-night TV talk show, which will offer a high-profile opportunity to sell his budget and economic programs. His California trip began with a cheering crowd of about 1,300 people had waited in line for hours for tickets to the town hall meeting. The tone was set with "Obama, Obama" chants as the president entered the room and clinched when the first questioner asked if he planned to run for re-election. Mr. Obama replied that his term should be judged by whether the economy is improved, the nation has gotten "serious" about health care, made "significant progress" on energy, made education more affordable and started controlling the federal deficit. "I would rather be a good president taking on the tough issues for four years than a mediocre president for eight years," he said. That prompted more applause. White House officials had expected questions about AIG, given the furor over the $165 million in bonuses given to officials at the company, which has received $180 billion in government aid. When the president mentioned the bonuses, many in the crowded booed. But not one person asked about the matter. Instead the questions were about issues that hit closer to home: teachers losing their jobs, immigration law, union organizing and the ability of community banks to continue making loans. The president reiterated his commitment to pushing comprehensive immigration legislation, but declined to answer a question about his timeline for action. He said he supported efforts to make it easier for unions to organize. The second-to-last questioner came closest to asking about the financial mess. She asked Mr. Obama if he would support a cap on interest rates that banks that have received taxpayer assistance can charge on credit cards, and Mr. Obama took the opportunity to launch into a long explanation for how the economy got into the mess it's in today. From there, he pivoted to address AIG again, the first chance he had since his opening remarks, diagnosing the root of the company's problems and predicting a solution will be found. He said he supported consumer protections in the credit card industry, but did not say if he would support a cap on interest rates. The final questioner brought the economic crisis home, saying he was laid off from his job after 13 years and now can't get a new one because of a 20-year-old felony conviction. "I can't get no work. I have a family to support. What do I do?" he asked the president. Mr. Obama replied that it appeared like he had made amends for his past mistakes and proven himself in the job market. Typically, he said, felons have trouble getting their first job after pulling their lives together. He guessed that it was the general job market holding him back, not the conviction. Upon presidential questioning, the man said he was laid off from the auto industry -- Toyota Motor Corp. Mr. Obama replied that he had expected him to name an American auto company. "When Toyota's having problems and laying off, that tells you how tough the problems in the auto industry are right now." Write to Laura Meckler at laura.meckler@wsj.com | ||
| Libralind2 AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Libralind2 Post Number: 1205 Registered: 09-2004 Rating: N/A |
How the Fed Failed to Tell Obama About The Bonuses By David Cho and Michael D. Shear Washington Post Staff Writers Thursday, March 19, 2009; A01 Federal Reserve officials knew for months about bonuses at American International Group but failed to tell the Obama administration, according to government and company officials, exposing problems in a relationship that is vital to addressing the financial crisis. As pressure mounted on AIG employees to return the bonuses, new details emerged yesterday about what the Fed, the Treasury Department and the White House knew regarding the payments and when. AIG executives said the Fed was informed three months ago by the company that it would pay $165 million by March 15 to employees working at its most troubled division. The Treasury and White House said they learned of the payments from Fed officials only days before they were due. Close coordination between the Fed and the administration is now more important than ever as they near the launch of two signature programs to rescue the financial system, which together could reach $2 trillion and are aimed at reviving consumer lending and purchasing soured assets and loans from ailing banks. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, a central figure in the decision to bail out AIG last fall as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, said in an interview yesterday that he had not been aware of the size of the bonuses and the timing of the payments. "I was stunned when I learned how bad this was on Tuesday [March 10]," Geithner said. "I shouldn't have been in that position, but it's my responsibility and I accept that." Two days later, Geithner told the White House. The last-minute disclosure irked some of the president's senior advisers, but they refuse to point fingers now, saying the timing had little impact on the outcome or the president's public statements this week. "Would I have liked an earlier warning system on this? Yeah," said David Axelrod, a senior White House adviser. "Would it have markedly changed things? Probably not. The legal constraints are the legal constraints." One source familiar with the discussions said the company had provided details about the bonuses to senior Treasury officials at least a month ago. A Treasury spokesman said last night that was not true. Democrats and Republicans in Congress are increasingly questioning how Geithner could not have known about the bonuses, given his past role in AIG's bailout, which has totaled more than $170 billion. "I'm sick and tired of hearing the administration and the Secretary of the Treasury say, 'I just found out about it,' " Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski (D-Pa.) said yesterday. The dispute over AIG's payouts represents the most pressing controversy confronting the administration as it addresses the financial crisis. Some private firms say the furor has made them wary of joining the federal initiatives to help save the economy. Government officials add that the newly charged political environment will make it difficult to ask Congress for more rescue funds. When the government rescued AIG in mid-September, no one was more central to the decision than Geithner. AIG officials met with Geithner and then Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. in New York on Sept. 14 to warn them of the dire threat posed by the derivative business developed by AIG's Financial Products unit. Executives told the two men the firm needed help but had at least a week before it faced collapse, sources said. Paulson left for Washington. But Geithner stayed up all night with officials at the New York Fed to examine AIG's situation. He discovered not only an enormous number of complicated trades, estimated at $2 trillion, but that AIG had backed retirements funds across the nation. He also realized that a collapse of AIG was imminent, and that the fallout would ripple across the banking system, sources familiar with the episode said. Geithner, with Paulson and Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, decided to lend the company $80 billion in exchange for an 80 percent ownership equity stake. About a month later, Geithner redesigned the bailout package for AIG, which raised the total to about $123 billion. During this period, Geithner's primary concern was keeping the financial system from collapsing, not what firms were paying their employees, a source said. Other staff members at the Fed and Treasury were in charge of the compensation issues and only briefed Geithner, two sources said. Once nominated for the Treasury post in December, Geithner recused himself from affairs related to specific firms. AIG executives said they disclosed in a quarterly filing late last year to federal regulators that employees at Financial Products would receive retention bonuses but the filings, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, did not detail how much individuals would be paid or the dates of the payments. The company revealed those details in meetings with New York Fed officials in January, AIG chief executive Edward M. Liddy said at a congressional hearing yesterday. "What we've assumed is that, in our discussions with the Federal Reserve, that they were properly communicating with others," Liddy said. "It appears that we need to improve upon that process." While declining to answer questions about the AIG bonuses, Fed spokeswoman Michelle Smith said in a statement: "The Fed and Treasury officials have coordinated closely on all aspects of the U.S. government's support for AIG during this extraordinary period." The Fed officials did not anticipate the political firestorm that would erupt over the bonuses, a senior government official said. "They clearly underestimated the matter," the source said. AIG executives say the Fed had been intimately involved in reviewing the contracts before the first dime was paid. The payments, which were due by March 15, were ready to be distributed last Tuesday, a senior AIG executive said. But the firm didn't get the go-ahead from government officials to make the payments until late last week. "We weren't authorized until Thursday night," the AIG executive said. "We were negotiating with the Treasury and the Federal Reserve. Treasury indicated that they needed it cleared by the White House, as well. We hit the go button for the payments on Friday." Geithner said the Fed did not tell him about the bonuses until March 10. He immediately huddled with his senior staff, examining options, but ultimately concluded that the government could not change contracts for work that had already been done. He confronted Liddy over the phone March 11, demanding that he renegotiate the bonus contracts. Some minor changes were made, but the bulk of the bonuses were paid. Company and Treasury officials say they will seek changes to bonuses promised for work done this year. Obama learned of the bonuses March 12, the day before they were paid out, from Axelrod, whom Geithner had briefed on the situation. The president was "aggravated" and "a little bit disbelieving," Axelrod said in an interview yesterday. For the new administration, the bonuses were a distraction from what senior aides called the main focus: getting the economy working and people back to work. "People are not sitting around their kitchen tables thinking about AIG," Axelrod said. "They are thinking about their own jobs." Obama's top economic aides -- including Geithner -- sought to identify any recourse. The task was made more difficult Friday, when millions of dollars were disbursed. Their message to the president when the group assembled for their first extended conversation about AIG in the Roosevelt Room on Sunday was not optimistic: They told him they had "done and will do what we legally can," Axelrod said. But Obama made clear at that meeting that he was unwilling to throw up his hands. He instructed Geithner and the others to seek legal ways that the government might recover the bonuses. And he made plans to tell the public what he thought the next day. That decision ran counter to the belief among some in his inner circle that the bonus issue while an outrage was a small problem compared with the economic issues confronting his young presidency. "The first and most important job we have is to get this economy moving again," Axelrod said. "As galling as this is, it doesn't go to the main issue." Over the following days, Obama came out swinging, denouncing the bonuses while expressing "complete confidence" in Geithner. Yesterday, he continued the effort, saying that "I don't want to quell anger. I think people are right to be angry. I'm angry." | ||
| Carey AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Carey Post Number: 1774 Registered: 05-2004 Rating: N/A |
"Over the following days, Obama came out swinging, denouncing the bonuses while expressing "complete confidence" in Geithner. Yesterday, he continued the effort, saying that "I don't want to quell anger. I think people are right to be angry. I'm angry."" There's been a lot of finger pointing and anger toward ...what? I am sure many of the individuals who recieved bonuses may not have deserved them but many others probably did. Look, bonuses are structured differently for different jobs within a company and thus for different individuals. A retirement package is sometimes structured as a bonus. Would it be fair take away your retirement because "somebody" botched a decision out of your controll? Plus, if you look at the money that was paid out as bonus money, it pales in comparision to the overall package. A bonus is simular to any other expense of doing business. It's the cost of that company for doing business. Obama may have been angry but a deep question is who was he angry at? He's not going to go line by line and pick out those he thought wasn't deserving of a bonus. And, it's just not right to think that no one deserves a reward when a company fails. How would you like your salary tied to the bottom line of your company? How would you like your families future stability and welfare sitting in the lap of some fool that you know nothing about? Bonuses are for a job well done and I can assume many within that company did a fine job ...for THAT company. I am sure many are familiar with "fi-fo". Money dropped in a barrel gets all mixed up. Who's money went to the AIG employees? Anger is cool ...sometimes, but it's wise to know what you are angry about. | ||
| Thumper Veteran Poster Username: Thumper Post Number: 824 Registered: 01-2004 Rating: N/A |
Hello All, Let's keep this in prospective: AIG gave Obama $104,000 for the campaign last year, in which he raised well over $700 million. Please, Obama has never struck me as being a CHEAP date! That $104 thousand dollars is nowhere near enough for him to sacrifice over $100 million in taxpayer's money. Now that does not make any damn sense. So, how the Washington Post and all of the other media playing these silly ass gotcha moments is starting to get on my damn nerves. Hell they let Bush run all over them and make a fool out of them for 8 solid years, in my opinion they have no credibility and no ground to criticize Obama on ANYTHING! Now those people at AIG should not have gotten those bonuses, especially since it was that department that was responsible for bringing the company down in the first place and many of those who got those bonuses had already left the company. If their bonuses was really tied into the quality of their work, then those sumbitches need to be in jail. I want the government to get the money back ANYWAY THEY CAN! Now to top it off Citigroup has just OK'd remaking the CEO's office for over $10 million!! http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=adLGVE_YzvUU See, these sombitches don't get it. It's time to stomp their dicks in the dirt! | ||
| Yvettep AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Yvettep Post Number: 3472 Registered: 01-2005 Rating: N/A |
I am sure that while many of us are wringing our hands about these bonuses, others of these executives from other institutions are plotting and getting away with other shenanigans... | ||
| Carey AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Carey Post Number: 1775 Registered: 05-2004 Rating: N/A |
Gosh Thump, I guess you don't like these guy? I thought for a minute you and I was going to finally be on the same page (what's up with the Red velvet cake) but nooooo, you come up in here cussing like you done lost yo' mind. I'm am with you on the Obama contribution money. It's not like Obama huddled in a backroom and stuck money down his drawers, that's contribution money. That's some of the same money McCain got ($50,000). So yeah, they can get off that weak ass mess. I think the republicans have a penchant for playing to the minds of stupid folks. The only ones that are stupid is them. Haven't they learned that those days are over. Now, why should they give the money back??? Really, do you know why they received those bonuses? Really ...are you saying they didn't do a good job for their company. If you ARE saying this, when did they stop doing a good job. I wonder how much money they made for their company over the period in which the bonuses were structured. OR, are you saying YO' money should not go in "dem sombitches" pockets. In reality it ain't your money or any other cussing maniac that eats Frosted Flakes. Slow your roll Foghorn Leghorn, you may be a rooster but this here is chicken feed .. "I say, I say, I say" | ||
| Thumper Veteran Poster Username: Thumper Post Number: 825 Registered: 01-2004 Rating: |
Hello All, No, I don't know why they received those bonuses and evidently, I'm not alone. Here's what I do know, the division that got the bonuses is the same division that traded, bought and sold derivatives. I have not been able to get a handle on what a derivative is. The only derivative I have ever heard of before now is a calculus math function. The financial version of a derivative sounds like a buying and selling something based on something else and don't actually exist in the real world. The derivative market crashed. As another person tried to explain it in AIG case. AIG is an insurance company that told all of these banks and companies that sells and buys derivatives that they would insure their derivative trading and if they lost on the derivative trades, AIG would pay them for their loss (like home insurance when your house is robbed or caught on fire). Well, AIG sold and got insurance premiums from everybody, and I do mean EVERYBODY ALL OVER THE WORLD, who trades this stuff. So when the derivative market crashed and the companies went to AIG and said I lost, where's my money, AIG did not have the money to pay them, hence AIG crashed and went to the government to save them. Now the department that said they would cover all of these derivative losses when they KNEW AIG did not have the assets to back up all of these insurance policies, that department is the one that got the $165 million bonuses. So, Carey, you tell me, what exactly did they do to warrant bonuses? *sitting down* Take your time...I'll wait. *humming* "In reality it ain't your money or any other cussing maniac that eats Frosted Flakes." First off, it is my money. I pay taxes and where's my bailout? *eyebrow raised* Second off, I don't eat Frosted Flakes! | ||
| Chrishayden "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Chrishayden Post Number: 7833 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A |
So, Carey, you tell me, what exactly did they do to warrant bonuses? *sitting down* Take your time...I'll wait. *humming* (Amen, Amen and amen again. How the f*** you get a bonus for running your company in the ground? Where I come from that's called theft! | ||
| Carey AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Carey Post Number: 1785 Registered: 05-2004 Rating: N/A |
Foghorn Leghorn and Lippy The Lion, you guys remind me of those 2 old farts that sat in the balcony of that muppet show. Sit down before you droll on someone. Look, listen real good, don't let your emotions cloud your mind. How many years was AIG operating and making money before the housing market fell out? Lets just say A WHOLE LOT. How about 30 years or so. Well, over those years a bunch of loot was made for that company and other employees. Now, why do you think someone would think they deserved a bonus. Don't start crying about yo' money and just answer the question. Did they make money for their company, Y E S ...a resounding yes. Do they need to hold onto their top minds? I know you'd rather die than say yes but tough titty, somebody gotta suck it. | ||
| Chrishayden "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Chrishayden Post Number: 7842 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A |
I am sure that while many of us are wringing our hands about these bonuses, others of these executives from other institutions are plotting and getting away with other shenanigans... (They are ALL doing it) Did they make money for their company, Y E S ...a resounding yes (Then why do they need all that government money? I tell you what--if you love them so much why don't you just sign over all your worldly goods to them and go live in the woods naked on roots and berries?) | ||
| Carey AALBC .com Platinum Poster Username: Carey Post Number: 1795 Registered: 05-2004 Rating: N/A |
LOL @ Chris ...you is a funny man. | ||
| Chrishayden "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Chrishayden Post Number: 7848 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A |
LOL @ Chris ...you is a funny man. (So that means you gonna join Da Movement? Our pants is pulled up But our DRAWERS is saggin'! REPRESENT!!!! |
