On March 19th, 2009 at 4:58 pm, flenser said:

a) They did not receive anything which “rightfully” was coming to them. Their company was broke, in some measure due to the actions of these very individuals. They have as much “right” to get million dollar bonuses from the taxpayer as the workers at GM have to sit around playing cards and getting paid by the taxpayer. That is, none.

The bonuses were paid as RETENTION bonuses to keep executives from abandoning ship, and help straighten out the financial mess, since they knew the details of the financial holdings.

These were valid contracts, offered by the company (encouraged by the Fed) and accepted by the employees. The executives stayed, and honored their part of the contract.

The bailout money prevented the company from going into bankruptcy (contrary to most conservatives wishes), and so… those contracts are still valid and in force.

Thus, they DO have a right to that bonus money.

If the company had died, the bonuses would NOT have been paid. Companies with no money do not pay their employees anything. I don’t know what you experiences were as a fireman, but things do not work that way out in the free market economy.

Once the lawsuits would have begun, as well as the bankruptcy proceedings, they would have been paid out from the selling off of the companies assets. They would still be held responsible for what they owed.

Now, would you like to continue with your sophomoric little snide comments? Or do you want to discuss things like a big boy?

And if, for some reason, I decided I did not want AIG to go out of business, I would have tied any money given to the company to restructuring of company compensation packages. Just as I would do if I gave money to GM.

But I would not in any case have lied to the American people and told them that AIG’s continued existence was required to save the economy. Not when the only thing I was really protecting was my own political career.

So this is the fault of the employees who received the bonuses? The Democrats failed to put restrictions on the money, so you are blaming the employees. And this makes sense to you? The employees are responsible? No, they are not. They had every right to not only expect payment of the promised and contractually obligated bonuses, and they were in no way obligated to turn it down and are in no way obligated to return it now or ever.

If this is the lesson that AIG need learn, then they need to be held responsible…not the employees. The Democrats need to be held to the coals for this, not the employees. If you, yourself, would not do what it is you are requiring the employees to do, then you have no business requiring them to do it.

b) The argument you are making here s the Democrats argument. The Democrats went to considerable effort to give these people our money. And you are defending their doing so. The GOP opposed these payouts on a straight partyline vote. So yes, you are attacking the GOP and siding with the Democrats.

How you can get me defending the Democrats giving AIG from this is simply astounding, and only a projection of your own thought process.

I am defending people getting money that was guaranteed them through the contracts that were signed. Where they got the money from is completely moot. The fact is that they were owed that money, thus it is rightfully thiers.

It is NOT THE FAULT OF THE PEOPLE RECEIVING THE BONUSES as to where the money came from. If you would like to provide evidence that shows these people went to the Congress and demanded they pay AIG bailout money in order for them to receive their contractually obligated bonuses, then please do so. However, you are making the argument that the employee is responsible for what the employer does. Is that how it works where you work? Are you to be held responsible for what your bosses do?

As I am on record numerous times as stating that these companies should have been allowed to fold and not received a dime from the government in bailouts, again I would like to know exactly where it is you are finding my defending the Democrats, bailouts or anything else.

Don’t put words into my mouth, and don’t make claims of statements which are not there.

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