The Kabuki Theater of AIG Outrage
My 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. For added comic relief, be sure to read through the entire transcript of Robert Gibbs’ press briefing yesterday. (It’s been sanitized. Just add 25 “ums” during every exchange on AIG and you will ensure accuracy.) This morning, AIG president Edward Liddy will take the hot-seat during a congressional hearing so that his enablers can wag their fingers at him while letting themselves off the hook again. One observer expects “outright talk of nationalization.” The House Financial Services subcommittee hearing begins at 10am Eastern.
As that flogging ritual takes place, hark! Tiny Tim Geithner hears the distant sounds of yonder bus wheels thumping.
On with the show…
***
The Kabuki Theater of AIG Outrage
by Michelle Malkin
Creators Syndicate
Copyright 2009
All the world’s a stage, wrote Shakespeare, and in the world of Washington, the curtains have opened on the most elaborate farce of the year. Welcome, taxpayers, to the Kabuki Theater of AIG Outrage – where D.C.’s histrionic enablers of taxpayer-funded corporate bailouts compete for Best Performance of Hypocritical Indignation.
Over the weekend, cloaked in their finest populist costumes, the Beltway’s hair-sprayed and powdered politicians and White House aides took to the airwaves to inveigh against $165 million in employee retention payments paid out by the government-backed insurance giant. Those bennies were reportedly part of a larger $450 million round of bonuses. After subpoenaing AIG, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo informed Congress that 73 employees in the very division responsible for the financial meltdown received bonuses of $1 million or more – 11 of whom left the company after getting the cash to retain them.
The checks were mailed Friday, but the March 15 bonus deadline had been on the Capitol Hill radar screen since December — when Maryland Democrat Rep. Elijah Cummings released a letter to AIG president Edward Liddy that noted: “Without taxpayer intervention, AIG would have ceased to exist and, to be blunt, all of its employees would have lost their jobs. Against this background – and given the massive layoffs occurring at other major financial entities, such as Citibank – the American taxpayers have a right to know why senior executives at AIG, who are frankly lucky to still have jobs, need to receive additional bonus payments of any kind to retain them at AIG.”
But it wasn’t until last week that the hapless court jester of the Obama administration, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, scrambled to rein in the payments. Liddy basically told him to buzz off. Geithner, the primary architect of the original $85 billion AIG bailout last fall, “reluctantly” approved the bonuses anyway. And now his outraged boss has ordered him to scour every legal nook and cranny possible to get the money back.
Spare me President Obama’s finger wag. He’s “outraged?” Meh. Two weeks ago, Team Obama forked over another $30 billion for the basket-case company after it reported $61.7 billion in fourth-quarter losses. That’s on top of the first $85 billion round and the second $38 billion round under Bush – both of which Barack Obama supported. (Obama, by the way, collected $103,000 in AIG campaign contributions.) Don’t talk to me about how the Obama administration opposes rewarding failure.
And don’t talk to me about all the politicians stampeding to tax AIG’s bonuses. Democrat Sen. Chris Dodd, the corporate crony who is the largest recipient of AIG donations (total: $281,400), is now leading the charge to tax the retention payments in order to recoup the $450 million the company is paying to employees in its financial products unit.
But Dodd, it turns out, was for protecting AIG’s bonuses before he was against them.
Fox Business reporter Rich Edson pointed out that during the Senate porkulus negotiations last month, Dodd successfully inserted a teeny, tiny amendment that provided for an “’exception for contractually obligated bonuses agreed on before Feb. 11, 2009,’ which exempts the very AIG bonuses Dodd and others are seeking to tax.” Pay no attention to what his left hand was doing. Dodd’s right fist is pounding mightily, mightily for the sake of the taxpayers.
The hypocritical indignation on the Hill is bipartisan. On his Twitter page last night, GOP Sen. John McCain huffed: “If we hadn’t bailed out AIG = no bonuses for greedy execs.” Well, if the GOP presidential candidate had held fast to his opposition to such doomed corporate bailouts in the first place, maybe bailout-palooza wouldn’t have spiraled into the gazillion-dollar mess it inevitably became. McCain asserted in a Twitter interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulous Tuesday morning that he “would have never bailed out AIG.”
But on September 18, 2008, McCain performed a 24-hour flip-flop and abandoned his principled opposition to the $85 billion AIG bailout, lamenting that the “government was forced” to do it. Soon after, McCain joined Obama in supporting the $25 billion auto bailout, the first $350 billion banking bailout (TARP I), and his own massive $300 billion mortgage bailout.
If Washington’s newfound opponents of rewarding failure want to do taxpayers a favor, how about giving back their automatic pay raises? How about returning all their AIG donations? How about taking back all the bailout money to all the failed enterprises, from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to AIG, the automakers, and the big banks? Barry? Harry? Nancy? John? Chris? Bueller? Bueller?
Exit stage left. The curtain falls.
See what others have said
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Trackbacks
- Did Obama White House Fuel AIG Bonus Mess To Enact Tougher Rules With Public Support? « Peace and Freedom Global Future
- What I’m Politicing: AIG and Rush Limbaugh « Fastidious
- AIG & D.C. — It’s ALWAYS about WELFARE « Mark Epstein
- Obama-Gate: Rush Wants Obama To Fail, But AIG Wanted Obama and Dodd On Their Side « Peace and Freedom Global Future
- AIG Bonus Outrage is a Distraction | Axis of Right
- Obama’s Administration Not Sure What To Do…And It Shows |
- GOP congressman introduces birth certificate bill « Jim Blazsik
- An Unheeded Stimulus Warning And Ignored Financial Lessons « Utah Rattler
- AIG Bonuses: Paulson, Geithner and the Money Laundering Smoke Screen | The Great Illuminator
- The AIG Kabuki Theater | Citizen-Right
- All The World’s A Stage….
- Washington hypocrites are disgusting! « Iowa Defense Alliance
- The Dangerous National Hissy-Fit « Red Dot in a Red State’s Blog
- Hypocritical Posturing By Obama Over AIG Bonuses | OpenMarket.org
- The Dangerous National Hissy-Fit : Pursuing Holiness
- The new Scarlet Letter: It ain’t “A” for adultery – it’s “A” for A.I.G. « Danishova
- AIG CEO: “Bonuses are distateful…” | NEOAVATARA
- Audio: Bill O'Reilly dirty soundbytes from his "Those Who Trespass" audiobook | Mofo Politics | Hoping Obama fails
- Sandra Rose
- Watcher of Weasels » AIG Outrage: The Obama Administration Should Look in The Mirror
- Washington hypocrite theater - The AIG comedy show - On oscar worthy performance | Fire Andrea Mitchell!
- Jeremiah Films
- Obama’s Marxist Magic Mess–Big Bad Bonuses–Radical Socialist Sleight of Hand « Pronk Palisades
- The Kabuki Theater of AIG Outrage « NObama Blog
- Obama & Co Theater: Chaos & Cajolery UPDATED | The Anchoress
- More Taxpayer Rip-Offs; Fed Explodes Money Supply, Reviving Fears of Stagflation | OpenMarket.org
- The Post Wherein I Realize « Perfidious Canada
- YankMcCain.com
- No truer words have been spoken | skewred.com
- A Cynical Poison-Pill Bill | OpenMarket.org
- Michelle Malkin » Putting on a great show: Kabuki in the House
- Enough with AIG; Obama’s Puppet Show and Democratic faux-Outrage « Northern Thoughts And Reflections
- Six Meat Buffet » Blog Archive » Politics As Professional Wrestling
- Two Peas in a Pod « Patriot Burr
- JABbering Stooge :: The Class War is over, The Haves won… :: March :: 2009
- Michelle Malkin » Look beyond the bogus bonus smokescreen
- Michelle Malkin » Geithner: Can’t get taxes straight, can’t get dates straight…
- SansPretense » The Truth in AIG Bonus Scandal
- GayPatriot » Is Barney Frank Bad for Gays?
- GayPatriot » The Lame Excuses of Democrats Who Voted for AIG Bonuses
- GaryMcCollum.com » Kennedy-esque Criticism of The One
- sisu
- The Next Dem Smokescreen: Fanny/Freddie Bonus Hype to Cloud Role in Financial Mess | The Great Illuminator
- BUUUUURRRRNING HOT
- Dueling Analogs: All Your Bailout Are Belong to Us « BUUUUURRRRNING HOT
- Michelle Malkin » A question for the 85 CYA-on-AIG House Republicans
- Roll call vote breakdown: The 85 House Republican Traitors in American History who supported Rangel’s 90 percent bonus tax "Update" | USA House Senate Resign or Commit Suicide.com Blogs
- GayPatriot » Rahm Must Go, Continued
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- Michelle Malkin » The bonus blowhards pull an Emily Litella
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A Seattle website called Examiner.com reports that Senator Obama received a nice “bonus” from AIG to the tune of $101,000 in contributions. Oh, cry us a river, B.O.! Saw this on Drudge.
..or could we say Obama was FOR AIG before he was against them???
Uh, did you read my column? It’s right there:
First, create an “enemy” (Corporations and the rich). Second, move in to make sure they run properly and the rich don’t “get richer” (nationalization). Third, dupe the people into thinking you solved a problem (socialism and party power).
March 18 (Bloomberg) — Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told congressional leaders the U.S. will recoup executive bonuses paid by American International Group Inc. as outraged lawmakers raced to take back such payments from all companies getting federal bailouts.
Geithner, who has come under fire from Congress over the AIG payments, said in a letter to lawmakers last night the government will recover the money by requiring it be repaid from company operations and deducting the amount from the next $30 billion in aid being provided to the insurer.
DO THEY REALLY THINK WE ARE THAT STUPID?
Obama and Geithner have chosen to look incompetent instead of dishonest. The coming AIG bonuses were known to all for half a year. They were required by law (thanks to Senator Dodd (D-CT)). For Obama and Geithner to claim that they did not hear about these bonuses until last week “strains belief”, as Hillary! would say…
Every last congress person who claims “I didn’t know that was in there” then is going to have a very difficult time claiming to me they read the entire stimulus bill in only a few days.
Chap has defended the short bill reading/analysis/debate time in the past saying essentially “they all knew what was in the bill”. I realize these are different bills, but the fact is, very few congressritters actually read what it is they vote on.
My local rep claims he didn’t know these “bonus” items were in the bill.
Yes – and trouble is, a great percentage of the people (including congress) are in fact that stupid.
Geithner might be that stupid too. He hasn’t done anything to demonstrate otherwise.
The plot thickens!!!
Can anyone explain to me why the Nobama administration is so concerned with distancing itself from rewarding failure? Haven’t these statists (per Mark Levin directive
) been doing the same with welfare for decades?
Kabuki Theater……loved it!
Vote. The. Bums. OUT!
The whole idea and implementation of a bailout is stupid. All it has done is to maintain an artificial economic stage in a market which is trying to correct itself. Pouring money into it will only porlong its process of correction.
Excellent column.
I would love to hear some direct, honest answers to your questions in the closing paragraph. It will never happen, honesty is a rare commodity in DC.
” I’m shocked, I tell you, shocked !”
In previous comments I have likened these buffoons in D.C to pre-school children and junior high school students for their actions.
My deepest apologies to pre-school children and junior high school students. Even the governance of the US by these young kids would be better than what we have now.
Incompetence, hypocrisy, corruption, power-grabs, cowardice, are the order of the day in D.C.
I am tempted to ask, can it get any worse, but we all know it can, and will.
Obama can’t find 540m for our wounded troops yet…
20B increase for food stamps
46.7B for Education
26.3B for energy
72.5B for transportation
13.3B for labor
12B for windmills and solar???wtf
18.7B to monitor GLOBAL WARMING wtf
and the topper of the topper
51.7BILLION for FOREIGN AID
Total just for these few
261.2 Billion
WHERE WOULD THOSE BASTARDS BE WITHOUT OUR MILITARY?????
Why not drop that last one for those who gave so much?
I am really pissed!!!!!!!!
sorry for going off topic but again I am really pissed!!!!!!!!
So the gov is outraged about about the millions in bonuses but doesn’t care much about the trillions in debt to shore up AIG and other banks. If anyone needs to resign or commit suicide it’s the member of congress who voted for all this without first reading the bills.
rambler said: So the gov
is outragedknew all along about the millions in bonusesbutand doesn’t care much about the trillions in debt to shore up AIG and other banks.Just sayin…
1. Mrs. Malkin, thanks for the informative column.
2. It’s a shame that folks in this country don’t know the basics of the Constitution anymore. If only they’d
readskim it, they’d know that this indignation is unfounded. The executive branch executes the laws written by the legislative branch. As Mrs. Malkin’s column states, the law passed by Congress (thank you Sen. Dodd) actually sought to protect the bonuses. Now Obama is looking for all “legal means” to get the money back? I see that was the plan all along. “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.” Proverbs 22:7We need a Vaudeville stage hook to yank these clowns out of office.
fifty-Two percent of us are, the 52% that voted for this Marxist.
If I were Liddy, I’d sit there and let the “inmates” pontificate and bluster. Then when it is my turn to talk, I’d call them all hipocites and remind them about the little provision they VOTED on and then say Screw You. Then get up and leave.
Of course, the press would make Liddy look like the fool instead of the idiot scum called senators!
OH, and keep up the great work Michelle.
I was talking to a friend of mine about the insurance for the military thing. Of course, I didn’t tell her that her favorite person eva was the one who came up with the idiotic idea of the military getting private insurance. I did, however, point out that if you’re injured in an act of war, the insurance won’t cover you. She thought it was beyond stupid. Of course once she finds out that Obama was the one with the bright idea, she’ll change her tune right quick.
Best column ever! Glad it was on Drudge so more people will read it. Can’t wait until April 15!!!!
I wonder if Obama will send his hitmen after Michelle?
A small price to pay…
Although I would have rather that the government not get into the bail out business in the first place, a lot of good may come from this. There is so much genuine outrage from Americans about bail-outs, and their related fall-outs, it’s unlikely that the government will try this again. So, if at the end of the day the American taxpayers wind up owning one failed insurance company, it may be a small price to pay in order to save our capitalistic system.
Also, the disgust and contempt that many Americans now have for the Federal Government (too bad it took some so long to open their eyes), could result in a positive change in Congress in ‘10.
Now is the Democrats don’t destroy what’s left of the country by then, we still have hope.
Bueler? Loved it!
Here we go. The inflationary sprial amidst economic stagnation. Jimmy Carter years on steroids. Stop the barking and screeching you rats. Never mind Wall Street executives. This old toad Grassley needs to commit ritual seppuku along with all his cohorts in congress who conspired to steal tens of trillions in world savings for their own political benefit. The dope does not even see the irony. At the least he and the other congressional crooks need to be in a jail cell for 30 years.
Michelle Malkin said:
Michelle used the word “inveigh.” I don’t know what that means. You need to take it easy on me, I went to government schools.
Now in olden days, before the era of hope and change, whenever I found a word I didn’t know, I would just look it up. But now I think I’ll just sit here on my rooftop waiting for Obama to bail me out from my ignorance…
This is so unfair. We need to give Obama and his team a fair chance. It’s too soon to judge. Yea, right!
53!!! 53 percent of us voted for that marxist!!!
Nice article MM. Why did you leave out Grassley here? I thought his quotes were at least the most entertaining. Or was it more about hypocrisy (presuming Grassley relatively clean here) than kabuki?
How bout the salary for congress be $1.00/year.
Chap – as a lawyer you know what “evidence” is of value to the crux of a case vs that which is not. Grassley’s comments were stupid, no more or less than that. PS – why do you always start the side show.
Drudge headlines re: the Grade School Bandits…
They apparently have an excuse for everything. These morons are going to plant this 757 into a mountainside. Absolutely clueless when it comes to anything other than advancing their own personal gain. They can always return to their fall back position: George Bush did it.
Fixed.
Heh
[From MM's text:]
You mean, 80% isn’t nationalization??
Be thankful – we are witnessing some thing historic. The era when the United States of America becomes a facist state run by our own true blue African American Facist (AAF for quick reference)! The era when we become subjects and not citizens.
158 million on bonuses is an outrage, but 1.4 trillion and growing is a good thing…
obamalogic at work.
” Time to round up the USUAL suspects…”
Huh? The title of the column is “Kabuki Theater of AIG Outrage” the subtitle of the Grassley post is… wait for it…. “Kabuki Theater of Outrage.” I am not criticizing, I am curious about why Grassley was left out when she made such a big deal of him just yesterday. And that is hardly a “sideshow” question. That is a question about the freaking column itself. What could be more on topic?
Obama will get some of the money by trying to eliminate most of the military.
Russia just announced a “major military buildup.” They shouldn’t have to do a lot of building to be superior to what Obama will leave us with after he finishes off the military.
Chap – my apologies. Your post sounded critical to me, I’m glad you are in total agreement with Michelle on the hypocracy of Obama and his administration. Again, I apologize
loved the post article michelle, and i find it incredibly hard to believe that i knew the aig big wigs were going to get retention bonusses while all the people inside the beltway didn’t. i heard about it last fall when the 1st bailout was being rushed through congress. dodd had to know about it, because he specifically blocked the part of the bill designed to eliminate it. the head of aig was on a sunday news show explaining that if aig was to ever pay the money back it needed to keep it’s valuable staff. how can these lying a-holes now claim they didn’t know about this until last week. was barry in hawaii when this was on the news, tending to his grandmother? i know i saw the aig president on a news show explaining this debacle last year.
DO THEY REALLY THINK WE ARE THAT STUPID? Sadly they and their MSM apologist do indeed think at least a large enough segment of the population is that stupid as has been pointed out—
53!!! 53 percent of (us, we, you, them) MORONS voted for that marxist!!!
Yes, there are indeed people that stupid. The moral outrage, screaming and histrionics of our Senators and Congressmen is over the top but really stupid and lazy people are easily impressed.
If there had never been a bail-out there would be no argument but that is beyond some folks grasp.
—
Keep the change-I’ll keep my guns
we’re back in the USSA..don’t know how lucky you are boys…back in the US back in the USSA…
You’re going to have to write a retraction, Michelle. Search the web for the original coverage of this – Dodd proposed the amendment to stop the bonuses, but had nothing to do with the exemption.
As I mentioned yesterday, Obama throwing Geithner under the bus in 3…2…1…
Michelle cannot emphasize strongly enough that these posturing politicians were all in favor of taking Wall Street’s campaign contributions until they were against it. We need to legally redefine bribery to include campaign quid pro quos.
Democrats are against compensation, and against profits. Control is good, though. They love control.
And they want our guns now (HR 45). And someone (everyone denies responsibility) sent the active army into an Alabama town – see Drudge. Feeling safe?
Paint me fed up.
OBAMA; Less then 4 to go and out.
source please.
How about outright talk of armed revolution by American workers? How ’bout them apples you thieving frauds? Please have the decency to commit ritual seppuku now.
Yep, Geithner is the next one to feel bus tire tracks. Wonder when it will happen…when BHO’s approval numbers go below a certain point?
Anyway, it’ll be another thing to get the media off topic for several weeks.
What a mess….and this ole country keeps on keepin on….
God Bless America
more on the Dems’ incompetence (which this blog and others failed to catch) here
chap, 51% actually, but 2% voted twice. nonetheless, we are all in the crapper now. but the 64 trillion dollar question now is why are the msm going along with this farce that geithner and obama didn’t know about this when the entire educated population of the u.s. knew about it months ago? must not be NEWS to catch a democrat president in a bald faced lie. i did not have sex with that woman, miss lewinsky. how my semen got on her dress is a total mystery.
Dodd is just a victim of all that AIG donation money…corrupting a good man like chris dodd
Will Obama throw Chris Dodd under the bus for coming up with the exclusion that allowed the bonuses (bona)?
Why isn’t Chris Dodd being questioned more about this? Can anyone direct me to any heat he is feeling?
That only gets you to 52.02%. Almost 3.9% of Obama voters must have voted twice to get to 53%.
IT’S OFFICIAL! GEITHNER HAS BEEN THROWN UNDER THE BUS!
You catch the Press Briefing just now? “Obama has complete confidence in his Treasury Secretary,” BUT…
“Secretary Geithner last week engaged with the CEO of AIG to communicate what we thought were outrageous and unacceptable bonuses,” White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.
President Barack Hussein Obama? He had NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS. He doesn’t even KNOW Timothy Geithner…
hahahaahhahahahaha!!!! The sad part is, he could actually use this excuse and 51% of the population would believe him.
The thing that continues to astound is the complete and utter lack of shame on the part of all the people involved. If this were a less-civilized country, people would be rioting in the streets over this.
Should we take up a collection and send him to the Emerald City in the Land of OZ so the Wonderful Wizard can give him a brain?
—
Keep the change-I’ll keep my guns
It would be so cool if Liddy virulently dressed-down the Dais of Clowns presuming to question him.
AIG is no saint in this, but the real culprits are the profound morons presuming to chastise it.
Dodd: “You paid a bonus I approved for special exemption??!? How dare you?”
Pelosi: “You flew a private jet for your own convenience to get here without paying for it yourself??? How dare you???”
Grassley: “You haven’t committed suicide yet??!? How dare you???”
Why did Flight 93 have to be the one that failed?
You know why I’m happy to be a conservative? Because this is what the voices of the left sound like.
Jon Stewart admits Tucker Carlson was right.
http://youhavetobethistalltogoonthisride.blogspot.com/2009/03/jon-stewart-tucker-carlson-was-right.html
Jon Stewart weighs in on Tea Bagging the White House.
It’s off topic but very important:
I’m more upset over the $90 billion of taxpayer money that AIG gave to European banks.
Where’s the outrage on this?
From the First Book of Democrat:
Psalm 2008-2012
Obama is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He leadeth me beside the still factories.
He restoreth my faith in the Republican Party.
He guideth me toward the path of unemployment.
Yea, though I walk through the valley
of the breadline, I shall not go hungry.
Obama has anointed my income with taxes.
My expenses runneth over my income.
Surely, poverty and hardship will follow me
all the days of his term.
From hence forth, we will live all the days of our lives in a rented home with an overseas landlord.
“I am glad I am an American,
I am glad that I am free.
But I wish I was a dog,
and Obama was a tree.”
We have senators (named SCHUMER) who are threatening to tax the AIG bonuses at a rate of 100%… This BRAINDEAD IDIOT obviously has no concept of THE CONSTITUTION… That alone should scare the people to take action against this MORON… These are the same LAWMAKERS who said we must not delay TAXMAN GIETHNER appointment… HURRY, HURRY!!! The same administration who said pass the “STIMULUS” PRONTO, no time to read it, let alone DEBATE… HURRY, HURRY!!! Now we have to CHASTISE the HEAD of AIG, just like the AUTO EXECS… Wring our hands, and show DEEP CONSTERNATION!!! MICHELLE, as you say DEEEEP KABUKI, or as I interpret it, DEEEEEEEEP BULL S*#T!!!
Dear, dear Michelle, you are brilliant.
pueblo1032, my next question – what if they don’t care for what mainstream Americans are doing? Will we get taxed to the point of oblivion? They are using taxation as a weapon. What the heck else do we as American’s need? This is blatant criminality.
ROFLMAO!
AMEN!!
I hope you will be happy, your quote has just been sent to most of Northern Indiana
.
Why is anyone asking why? I mean really. This is not about the facts of the matter. Its about perception. If AIG could have paid these bonuses and made our congressmen/women look good, we’d not be having these hearings. Nothing about any of this, or what is still coming that will be just like this AIG mess, should surprise anyone. Expect more of it. The way these companies can avoid it is by either finding a way to blame Bush for it OR by making our current batch of “leaders” look good. Nothing about any of this is based on what is “right or wrong”, what makes sense or doesn’t, what is sane or insane.
We are not at some place of reason and principle in this country. Where we are is media sound bites and perceptions. We just elected a president due to the winner managing perceptions successfully enough to win.
Give up the “why’s”. We can’t argue our way into this making sense to the folks in power. We will need to file law suits regarding constitutionality as stop gap and then in 2010 VOTE VOTE VOTE, and in 2012 VOTE VOTE VOTE.
The left cares nothing about if something is constitutional or not. They only care about what they can get away with.
It is time to stop fighting them at the current site of this war. It is time to move all that effort, the making sense of it, the expectation that “R” congress folks will fight for us, and re-focus funds and energy to the court system and start blocking aspects of their current attempt to remake America with legal challenges.
The longer we wait for someone at the congressional level to stand up for us, the more we will lose freedom and liberty.
We have to fight where it will matter. Challenging the constitutionality of these new “laws” is our best hope.
Let them do whatever they want. We’ll see them daily in court.
This stuff is actually pretty cool. Can’t think of a better example than how the government wants to take over than this AIG matter.
It is just starting to get interesting isn’t it?
Ha. He’s just some guy from the neighborhood.
Barney Frank this morning on the wisdom of retaining AIG executives via bonuses (I paraphrase):
“It doesn’t make sense that those who created this mess should be in charge of fixing it”.
And who were the primary political architects of the “ownership society” AIG’s products were accommodating? Clueless.
BTW, McCain was 3rd or 4th on that list of AIG campaign contributions.
Bloomberg TV is reporting that rumors are circulating that dissent is brewing on the Fed Board. Sentiment is growing for a more neutral Fed. Keep in mind that Bernanke cannot act without majority support of the Board.
No matter what he does (or did) Barney will always consider himself completely blameless.
Yes it is brother, yes it is.
Here’s the Bloomberg link on dissention brewing in the Fed.
This hypocrisy reminds me of that Dilbert cartoon that came out a week or two back…
“I yeild to the hippocryte from another state…”
Usually there is a longer loop between the government’s actions and the unintentional consequences of their action. Those of us abnormal political junkies can usually follow the dots and connect them so that we get it. We get that the mom and pop tool and die that specialized in making hardware for high end sail boats and to close their shop and lay off workers in the middle of Wisconsin because congress raised taxes on luxury boats so that the boat builder in Seattle stopped selling and making boats.
We political junkies easily see that the blame for laying off workers and closing down the mom and pop operation in Wisconsin is due to Congress raising taxes on luxury sail boats.
However almost no one else is tenacious enough to to the work to get through all the steps because normally the steps and the loop are too long to navigate.
And those of us who get it, we just don’t understand why folks don’t.
However the good news is with this AIG thing, the loop is short and the dots/steps are few. The unintended consequence of AIG executives getting their contractual bonuses is only a few steps removed from Dodd, Frank, bail-out money. This time folks who normally don’t get it because the dots/steps/loop are too long, too many dots to connect, even THOSE folks see it this time.
Even THOSE folks are realizing that their tax money going to AIG execs is pissing them off, those folks see its not JUST AIG this time. This time its the congress and Obama. There are only a few dots to connect this time.
Oh this is so interesting…..
Oh yes it is brother, yes it is.
You know, I want to laugh at such an inexperienced, juvenile president, but then I hesitate, knowing what damage he IS doing and CAN DO to this country during the next 3 years. May GOD show us wisdom.