an exclusion to the stimulus bill, exempting bonuses previously contracted. They all knew that these bonuses were coming. They made an exclusion for them knowing they could later use this populist diversion from what's really happening at AIG, tens of billions pouring from AIG to European banks. BHO and the Dems (and some Republicans) are total frauds on this.
Plus, if they truly can get this money back, after the fact, your mattress may not be a safe place for your money.
I wonder what Senator received more campaign contributions from AIG than did anyone else.
Getting the money back. What a joke.
As a Harvard grad maybe he should reread Article One, Section Nine of the US Constitution, which among other things specifically prohibits "Ex Post Facto" laws.
This is just another example of the Obama administration trampling over the Consitution in his zeal to marginalize private industry and shift all economic power to the government.
The most obvious is the common law rule of Discharge by Supervening Impracticality:
Where after a contract is made a party’s performance is made impracticable without his fault by the occurrence of an event the non-occurrence of which was basic assumption on which the contract was made, his duty to render that performance is discharged, unless the langague or the circumstances indicate the contrary.
When the bonuses were contractualy promised, a basic assumpton of both parties was that AIG Financial Products subsidiary would not become insolvent at the time the bonues were due. That is exactly what happened when claims made on the credit default insurance written by Financial Products exceeded the reserves of the subisidary and indeed of AIG holding itself. The federal money saved the subisidary from bankruptcy but it obviously was never contemplated that these funds could be sued to pay the bonuses.
So AIG Financial Products has already been legally discharged from paying the bonuses.
And to the extent that a jury question is posed as to whether this doctrine is applicable, let the AIG employees try to argue to a jury that they are entitled to bonuses from taxpayer money.
"The federal money saved the subisidary from bankruptcy but it obviously was never contemplated that these funds could be sued to pay the bonuses"
It also was never contemplated that the money was not to be used to pay any of the legal obligations of the company, and like it or not that includes bonuses. You could make the same argument that none of AIG's liabilities were incurred with the thought of insolvency by AIG. The fact remains that AIG entered into the agreements to pay the bonuses and unless a court of law invalidates the contracts getting the money back from the AIG employees looks unlikely at best, and rightfully so.
Your argument might play well to the court of public opinion, but in a court of law I doubt it will play as well.
I never got a bonus of any kind for not meeting my objective. How could someone run their division into a toilet and still get bonuses?
This is Embezzlement, not bonus.
No wonder we are in deep shit. One rule for the haves, and another rule for the have nots.
bonuses, but unfortunately we should swallow hard and pay the bonuses. Obama is pissed and just wants to tear up the contracts, and this from a trained lawyer. This isn't a matter of money, but more about our fundamental values, and that is the sanctity of contracts. How do you think the business community would look if they were worried if the govt would start abrogating contracts left and right? All this would do is give companies, even those without govt involvement, an incentive to break inconvenient contracts. This is about trust and commitment between companies and employees.
Thrilled or not , If you support the payments then you support the policies that made them possible. Capitalism is rotten to the core.
an exclusion to the stimulus bill, exempting bonuses previously contracted. They all knew that these bonuses were coming. They made an exclusion for them knowing they could later use this populist diversion from what's really happening at AIG, tens of billions pouring from AIG to European banks. BHO and the Dems (and some Republicans) are total frauds on this.
Plus, if they truly can get this money back, after the fact, your mattress may not be a safe place for your money.
I wonder what Senator received more campaign contributions from AIG than did anyone else.
This is a typical capitalist lackey trick. Give tax money to the capitalist class and spin it as economic stimulus . The block headed middle class falls for this lackey trick every time.
any and all contracts can be litigated.
Obama specifically all "legal avenues". How is that trampling the constitution.
You are acting like Lou Dobbs and O'Reilly now.