CNN

Blame Obama and the Congress. They knew the bonuses were in there they are trying to shift the blame away from them and on individuals. If they can do that to them what stops them from doing what they want to other people? What about the raise Congress just got? Our hours are being cut and we lost 600, 000 jobs again this week. This is a diversion. I thought people were smater than that.

If you thought the AIG bonuses were a waste of taxses, why would you support their state spending additional money on top of what the federal government is already doing about AIG? Epecially if you live in a state where none of the bonus recipients live, like Oklahoma or Montana. Do you people really think that these investigations are going to be cheap? Definitely a good use of tax dollars.

@Simmy
I can say the same for Democrats! remember Geithner was involved with this before his appt to Obama's administration and anyone will do or say anything to win. Proof is being shown with Obama.

Who will investigate the congress !

Get off the AIG stuff, I say just break this BIG company down into separate companies with appropiate controls. How do you control something that is so big and so out of control? If it is too big to go down then break it up. That is what the rules were before Reagan and his co-horts undid them and looky here what we have and unregulated mess. everything was separate, now it so intertwined that to unravel this mess is going to take some big steps by the government.

The money-changers were thrown out of the temple for making money off of other people's money. I'm getting of the parasites and bloodsuckers of the world getting rich off our money. I'm ready to stuff mine under my mattress (if I could get it from the company where my 401(k) is hiding).

We have every right to tax those bonuses back. There are no rewards for failure and thanks to TARP, we OWN 80% of that company; not these fat cats.

The AIG issue is a populist distraction from the real problem, which is the outrageous compensation that CEOs get on Wall Street. It increased tremendously during the Bush administration. The ratio of CEO compensation on Wall Street to the average worker at their company in 2003 was 301-1. In 2004, it was 431-1. In late 2008, a full year into our recession and with businesses and banks failing all over the country, CEO compensation rates were still at 400-1.

They reward themselves no matter the condition of their company. That is this opposite of free market capitalism. It is socialism for the wealthy. If we taxed back to 2003 levels, we could fund every solar, wind, infrastructure, electric grid, and public transportation project in the country.

Open the flood gates!!

CNN PLEASE POST THIS.

Can't blame Bush for this.

EVERYONE'S bonus should be determined by the quality of work they did. These guys obviously dd a really bad job, and therefore should not receive any bonus!

I keep hearing that these bonuses are necessary to attract top quality people to these Financial institutions, like AIG. If corporate failure, universal economic collapse, fraud, corruptions, and utter greed is what we get from these "top quality" people, who needs them? They obviously aren't doing anything to better anyone's life but their own. In fact they're ruining millions of people's lives. Who needs them?

I do have money invested in AIG. Not because I put it there, but because my initial investment company was bought by AIG and I became an unwitting recipient in their failure, fraud, greed and corruption. Not much of that original money is left, by the way. Who needs them?

I have negotiated several contracts between employees and employers and understand the legal issue behind contractual obligations. Unfortunately, these "contracts" with corporate executives only speak to their fraud, greed and corruption. contracts should reward people for failure, fraud, corruption, and greed. Who needs them?

In a few days I will be meeting with my financial advisor. Do what I'm going to do America. Take your money out of AIG, and others like them. You can't pay bonuses to "Top Quality Executives" if no one gives you the money to do so!

How can we turn a blind eye the the fact that this stimulus had written into it, and was worded so that these bonuses could be payed, and in some cases would be payed.
This congress gave these banks, permission to pay out these bonuses. Until now that everyone finds out about them, and gets mad. Now they want to impose their, will and power on them and take the money back.
This is the United States of America, not the USSR, or China.
Maybe it's not right to pay those bonuses out on a intellectual, or moral standard. But they do have the right to pay them out, and then they live with the consequences. But for a government to impose it's will, and to abuse it's power like this is worse, because if they get by with this..................?.................. Do you really think it stops here?
This government is already effecting your everyday lives via Global warming, and a down economy. They are pushing every agenda they can until we wise up, and start speaking up. (Speak while you still have a voice)

maybe some of this money ended up in some canadates re-election coffers, or maybe some seeking office for the first time; now that couldn't happen, could it..cc, MSNBC

All I have to say about AIG is "ENOUGH!"

wonder if mr madoff was able to get some this money in his hands, maybe there's a connection, could be why the Swiss are relaxing their hold on some accounts there, now this could get very interesting..

Dont you just love corporate socialism?Its ok for companies ,just not people on the street.

Wow, launching an AIG investigation.

It would a better use of their time if we gave these "investigators" a shovel with instructions to fix the potholes.

More posturing for an evening news sound bite. Can the public be that stupid. Yup!

it appears some comments must have hit a nerve in some circles close to the same bunch that has put a hole in the national debt, aka, AIG. too bad your screening people weren't working in the budget office 5 years ago, maybe their expert scrutinizing could have saved us this fiasco..

You can't blame Bush anymore.

worriedmom,

Actually, this information was news for quite some time. I heard it reported before Bush left office. Before the bailout that almost forced McCain to suspend his campaign/debate, AIG was in the news. Why no one was outraged at that time is perplexing.

There are underlying themes being played out in the media. They're called "politics and grandstanding." And if you are per chance a Republican, let me be the first to inform you that Republicans are focused on winning elections, and care nothing about AIG, monies lost, unemployment, you name it. Their agenda is to stay in the spotlight, continue using propaganda to sway Independent voters, and rescue their dignity.

Society is to blame for continuing to support a lifestyle of greed, and condoning the evil cult of criticism. Peace....

The people who will get bit in the butt are the republicans who voted in congress to increase the taxes to 90% on the bonuses of the wealthy at AIG.

It sure makes the return to the pre Bush rates of 39% small by comparison.

Millions in bonuses for the execs of failed companies.

If there ever was a sense of "entitlement" in America, its most evident not among welfare recipients but in the boardrooms of big companies and on Wall Street.

The excesses of the business elite revealed lately remind me, at least in part, of the cause(s) of the French and Russian revolutions.

Maybe we should be focusing on the bailout plans that have lead to this controversy. The taxpayers should not have been forced by Congress to bail them out because they are too big to fail. AIG would be in bankruptcy and not paying bonuses.

I realize that AIG is wrong in these bonuses however I think our anger is being directed at the wrong people. It was our Congress and treasury that we should be mad at. They knew that these bonuses were in place and they thought it would just slid on thru unnoticed. However once people caught on, then Congress shifts the blame to AIG. Now I think AIG is partially to blame but I think our Congress is fully to blame and instead of putting our anger to AIG we need to put it to Congress! Let the tea parties begin!!

This is hilarious...so they are criminals, huh? Criminals for taking our money and not asking, huh? Criminals for running a big corporation which by the way, the people made, not them. They began as a small business and they grew, do you know what you call that? Not small business, big business. So people are upset for trying to save their company, huh? That's right their upset?? Because of AIG and how they do business?? How they did it?? You know, I think criminals are guys in jail or like Madoff...or wait a minute, I get it now. Is only criminal if one of your friends misled you, huh? Is only criminal if Madoff gets caught, huh? But it ain't criminal when one of your friends suggest to you that you should do that or try this insurance?? Look at what you're saying, I'll make you guys look like fools and celebrate like never before...ohh yeah, dynasty baby, dynasty, LOL!!!

Well done AIG !!

Another trillion dollar bailout...

May God have mercy on each one of us.

who's putting the bills?

the already bankrupt workers on main street.

the neo-cons on wall street are having it both ways.

robbing the nation and the world,

while putting on a face of justice.

well, that was the whole idea

when they decided to push obama into the WH.

The way I see it, this is more of a moral issue than a legal one. Aren't democrats always saying that you can't legislate morality. Morally, the executives at AIG should not take this money. They know that people all over this country are suffering and that taxpayer money of these very same people funded these bonuses. However, our wonderful leaders in Washington decided to word the bill that provided the bailout money to allow the payment of bonuses to stand. Therefore, the outrage that they have displayed is halarious. If these contracts are not honored, then no contracts from now on will be legally binding. Some of the executives at AIG have listened to their conscience and given the money back. That makes me feel better about them as people. However, I don't see how the government can make them do anything. Tge American people should direct their anger where it belongs. They need to direct their anger toward our esteemed leaders in Washington instead of sending death threats to these executives and their families.

$165 million is a lot of money. I givees they'll form a committee to investigate, which will cost the taxpayers tens of millions of dollars if not more more.

Yeah these folks did such a great job in running AIG, lets give em a bonus. I say let them go, and let them try to find a job in the economy they help create!

We definitely need to move on. No one likes the bonus issue at AIG, but the amount of money involved here is miniscule compared to the grand problem and not worth spending who knows how much time and money on fighting it in the courts (where the legal outcome would probably not be what everyone expects). The government and Congress need to re-focus on the big picture.

All the publicity and furor has most likely guaranteed that this is the end of contract compensation anyway, as well as the end of hedge funds.

The courts should hold up what is a legal binding contract for bonuses to the AIG employees, but that 165 million dollars is going to pale in comparison to the cost the taxpayers is shelling out so that Obama can jet-set all over the country on Air Force One every few days.

The horse already got out of the gate. What do we really need to learn from the AIG situation? (1) Any regulators responsible for oversite need to be as smart or smarter than those being regulated. (2) If you believe Sen Dodd or the Administration (i.e., that they were fooled about the wording of the bailout legislation), apparently the really smart people we need are already in AIG, and not in the Administration or Congress. Once again, to paraphrase d'Touqueville, Americans deserve the government they vote for.

so brian and pete!! last week everyone was outrage,how can the government allow this..why are'nt they doing something about it..now they are doing something about it..everyone's outrage..what gives ?

I believe that most of the money loan came from the Fed. Congress didn't have to vote on this money. The money in question is the 30 billion that was given to them in January that came from the TARP So were did they break the law? Why waste more money on a nun-issue. We have larger fish to fry like getting this country going and as of Nov. 2009 there will be no more bounuses. Case close.

You should be investigating Obama and his team!

Who are we kidding – very few people know anything about this story. If the special olympics comment were made by anyone other than obama, and by the likes of bush, gingrich, or cheney, the press would have interrupted regular programming to report the breaking news. 8,000 reporters from every media outlet in the country would have generated heaadlines that started with words like "BIGOT," "OUT OF TOUCH," 'INSENSITIVE,' "UNCARING," etc...
However, because obama said it, nothing is reported and it only shows up on cnn.com as a "ticker" story. what a joke. what hypocrisy. readers – do yourself a favor and find the audio or video of obama speaking those words and ask yourself why the crowd is clapping and cheering. can you say "cult of personality?" we're all in serious trouble

Brian,

I totally agree. There sure is alot of feigned innocence and hypocrisy in Washington these days.

Why are we wasting tax payers money on investigating LEGAL bonuses? Its another example of government wasting money to put on a show for re election bids. Obama and Congress rubber stamped the bonuses with approval in the Stimulus Bill.

Obamas Administration asked to include the language allowing the bonuses because they realized blocking these contractual obligations would bring a lawsuit, so they decided to explicitely allow them in law.

AIG bonuses (in contracts before the mortgage crisis) are not an outrage. The OUTRAGE is Obama and Congress acting like they had nothing to do with approving them, which is explicitely in the Stimulus Bill congress voted for and Obama signed. The bonuses should be paid from Obama and Congresses salaries.

I think obama's fake outrage has turned around and bit him on his butt

A bonus is supposed to be compensation for doing an exemplary job...these people ran AIG into the ground and are now parasitizing the taxpayer in grand style. If you or I do a poor job, we either DON'T get a raise or we get fired. These bonuses are thievery plain and simple....and stealing is a crime...deal with them accordingly.