So it seems that Congress and President Obama are still up in arms over these contractually obligated AIG bonuses. Know what would have better - and was something I favored back then over the bailout but my Senators ignored me - was a managed and orderly Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Know what happens to contracts in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy? They can be rewritten! So these Senators and Representatives who are screaming bloody murder about these bonuses would not have had to pay them if they'd let or forced AIG into Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
This is a prime example of why government should not be allowed to run anything in the private sector. Larry Kudlow has a great column about that today. I myself am outraged that Congress is so outraged at the bonuses when they consistently spend and spend and spend taxpayer money themselves and think nothing of it. And then they want to raise taxes so that they can spend more of our money. They would not strip the earmarks out of the last spending bill which total somewhere in the neighborhood of $8 -$18 billion, yet they are throwing a hissy fit over $165 million. The hypocrisy on display is just stunning. If they were so outraged at their own wasteful habits, then maybe we wouldn't be in this mess.
Senator Chris Dodd (D) wrote the amendment to the stimulus bill that placed no limits on bonus compensation for firms that took taxpayer money. And now he's predictably outraged. Well, Senator, then maybe you shouldn't have been the biggest recipient of campaign contributions from AIG.
And their latest solution - from people like Senator Chuck Schumer and Senator Claire McCaskill - is that if those AIG employees don't give back that money, well, they're going to pass a bill that targets those specific employees and taxes that money right back to the Federal government. At least, that is their plan. This is real proof that universities in America are not doing their job in educating people about the US Constitution and what it says. Check out Article One, Section Nine, Clause Three.
That section reads "No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed."
What is means is that you cannot pass a law after the fact and make an act that was legal into an illegal act and then punish those persons who were acting legally at the time. That section specifically forbids Congress from doing what they are proposing to do - punishing specific people at a specific company after the fact.
What the f**k is going on in Washington, DC? Is there anybody in charge anymore who actually knows the rules?
It's my opinion that if you help run your company into the ground, you don't deserve a bonus. However, what they are now attempting to do to recover those bonuses is illegal. And maybe I'm in the minority on this one but the US Constitution is the law of the land. You can't violate it this blatantly.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
It's depressing, knowing this is the level of competence Congress displays. May the public see through them.
And I don't know how Barney Frank or Chris Dodd can sleep at night.
I agree. I mean at the end of the day, it's a miniscule amount of money compared to what our elected representatives are planning to cull from our wallets that they just look like huge hypcrites.
It actually sends chills down my spine to see Barney Frank demanding the names of the people who got the bonuses. Dude, they had a contract. A contract that you approved, you twit. And you're going to bring down the whole U.S. government on them, because they did what they were legally allowed to do? It's unbelievable, and really makes me worry about the direction in which our country is headed.
Yeah I agree Publius... it's pretty insane. the government lis literally threatening private citizens for receiving contracually agreed upon bonuses which that same government already approved. Next step, they come for our guns.
I cannot wait for the lawsuit that will arise once Obama signs some version of the AIG bonus bill. What they are attempting to do is clearly unconstitutional. And how will AIG get anyone to come work for them ever again if the government can unilaterally rewrite their employment contracts? Good luck getting anyone of value to work there.
Post a Comment