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Study: Banks’ execs netted millions
$1.6 billion went to compensation despite bailouts

BY FRANK BASS AND RITA BEAMISH
The Associated Press

    Banks that are getting taxpayer bailouts awarded their top executives nearly $1.6 billion in salaries, bonuses and other benefits in the calendar year 2007, an Associated Press analysis reveals.
    The rewards came even at banks where poor results last year foretold the economic crisis that sent them to Washington for a government rescue. Some trimmed their executive compensation due to lagging bank performance, but still forked over multimillion-dollar executive pay packages.
    Benefits included cash bonuses, stock options, personal use of company jets and chauffeurs, home security, country club memberships and professional money management, the AP review of federal securities documents found.
    The total amount given to nearly 600 executives would cover bailout costs for many of the 116 banks that have so far accepted tax dollars to boost their bottom lines.
    Rep. Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services committee and a longstanding critic of executive largesse, said the bonuses tallied by the AP review amount to a bribe “to get them to do the jobs for which they are well paid in the first place.”
    “Most of us sign on to do jobs and we do them best we can,” said Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat. “We’re told that some of the most highly paid people in executive positions are different. They need extra money to be motivated!”
‘APPROPRIATE LEVELS’
    The AP compiled total compensation based on annual reports that the banks file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The 116 banks have so far received $188 billion in taxpayer help. Among the findings:
    The average paid to each of the banks’ top executives was $2.6 million in salary, bonuses and benefits.
    Lloyd Blankfein, president and chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs, took home nearly $54 million in compensation last year. The company’s top five executives received a total of $242 million.
    This year, Goldman will forgo cash and stock bonuses for its seven top-paid executives. They will work for their base salaries of $600,000, the company said. Facing increasing concern by its own shareholders on executive payments, the company described its pay plan last spring as essential to retain and motivate executives “whose efforts and judgments are vital to our continued success, by setting their compensation at appropriate and competi- tive levels.” Goldman spokesman Ed Canaday declined to comment beyond that written report.
    The New York-based company on Dec. 16 reported its first quarterly loss since it went public in 1999. It received $10 billion in taxpayer money on Oct. 28.
    Even where banks cut back on pay, some executives were left with seven- or eight-figure compensation that most people can only dream about. Richard D. Fairbank, the chairman of Capital One Financial Corp., took a $1 million hit in compensation after his company had a disappointing year, but still got $17 million in stock options. The McLean, Va.-based company received $3.56 billion in bailout money on Nov. 14.
    John A. Thain, chief executive officer of Merrill Lynch, topped all corporate bank bosses with $83 million in earnings last year. Thain, a former chief operating officer for Goldman Sachs, took the reins of the company in December 2007, avoiding the blame for a year in which Merrill lost $7.8 billion. Since he began work late in the year, he earned $57,692 in salary, a $15 million signing bonus and an additional $68 million in stock options.
    Like Goldman, Merrill got $10 billion from taxpayers on Oct. 28.
    The AP review comes amid sharp questions about the banks’ commitment to the goals of the Troubled Assets Relief Program, a law designed to buy bad mortgages and other troubled assets. Last month, the Bush administration changed the program’s goals, instructing the Treasury Department to pump tax dollars directly into banks in a bid to prevent economic collapse.
    The program set restrictions on some executive compensation for participating banks, but did not limit salaries and bonuses unless they had the effect of encouraging excessive risk to the institution. Banks were barred from giving golden parachutes to departing executives and deducting some executive pay for tax purposes.
    Banks that got bailout funds also paid out millions for home security systems, private chauffeured cars, and club dues. Some banks even paid for financial advisers. Wells Fargo of San Francisco, which took $25 billion in taxpayer
..................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....amp;EntityId=Ar00101

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“Most of us sign on to do jobs and we do them best we can,” said Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat. “We’re told that some of the most highly paid people in executive positions are different. They need extra money to be motivated!”

Oh....I'm sorry--didn't that just sound like a politician calling the kettle black???

WHO voted themselves a raise??

If you're own 'house' is not in order then one cannot be expected to lead another 'house' to order......

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Bill would release bailout funding
BY CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER The Associated Press

    WASHINGTON — A key House Democrat is pushing to get the second half of the $700 billion rescue fund released next month, before President-elect Barack Obama is inaugurated, in part to help stimulate the economy.
    Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said Monday he is preparing legislation to require that some of the money be spent for specific purposes, such as stemming foreclosures and reducing mortgage rates.
    At the same time, commercial real estate developers and other companies are seeking their own share of the bailout pot.
    Frank’s bill would impose tighter restrictions on the second $350 billion of the bailout funds, such as requiring banks to report on their new lending every quarter and toughening limits on executive compensation. Many U.S. banks have received federal capital in an effort to stimulate lending.
    “I don’t want to wait until Obama,” the Massachusetts Democrat said in a phone interview. “I think we can do it now.”
    The bailout funds, along with a stimulus package the Obama administration is expected to push early next year, would have “the impact that you need to get this economy back out of the dumps,” Frank said.
    A spokeswoman for Obama did not return a call for comment Monday.
    Last week, the Bush administration used the final piece of the initial $350 billion to provide loans to automakers General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC. The Treasury Department has earmarked $250 billion to buy stock in banks, including Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., and provided $40 billion in capital to insurance giant American International Group Inc.
    Lawmakers have criticized Treasury for not using any of the initial $350 billion to prevent additional home foreclosures. Up to 2.25 million Americans could lose their homes to foreclosure this year, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has warned.
    Frank said his legislation would include a version of a plan, supported by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair, to spend $24 billion to give lenders financial incentives to modify more loans and help more borrowers keep their homes. Bair has estimated it could prevent 1.5 million foreclosures.
    His proposal also would include a measure, under consideration by Treasury, to use governmentcontrolled mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to reduce mortgage rates to 4.5 percent or ....................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....amp;EntityId=Ar00403

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Hard to feel sorry for CEOs who lost bonuses

    I just read the Dec. 20 article about the loss of bonuses to executives, and how it hurts the state. I do admit that $178 million may hurt the state, but the percentage of that vs. the projected defi - cit is minute.
    The poor CEO from Goldman Sachs will not get his bonus of at least $50 million. I would like to know what his salary was!
    Can one person spend all that money in a lifetime? How much is too much? Are these CEOs’ salaries taxed percentage-wise as middle-income people’s? The older I get the more I realize there are many more rich people in this country than we can imagine.
    This might not be an issue if we did not have to bail out Wall Street. Who is going to bail out the lower- and middleincome people who have lost retirement savings, college loan possibilities, education cuts, Medicaid and Medicare cuts?

    VINCENT F. CARELLI
    Amsterdam

http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....amp;EntityId=Ar00907

Kinda says it all:

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Our government has been corrupt ever since it came into existence. Any time someone has something, there is always someone out there trying to figure out a way to take it away so they can profit. Personal freedom is no exception Since the erosion began, centuries ago, we've been turned into servants to the state, our labor is exploited by the government and is used to back up the debts these criminals run up so high that Jack's Beanstalk pales in comparison. Think about it, you are what the government uses to back their bonds. Your labor and your children's labor in the future. We are nothing more than bond servants to them, allowing them to issue servant bonds to support their spending sprees, graft and corruption. Now if that doesn't make you mad, I don't know what will. What do you think "backed by the full faith and credit of the United States" means? The government bodies do nothing that produces a product or any form of profit, they are there to restrain the people

http://www.corbettreport.com/articles/20081220_the_big_one.htm

Quoted Text

Our government has been corrupt ever since it came into existence. Any time someone has something, there is always someone out there trying to figure out a way to take it away so they can profit. Personal freedom is no exception Since the erosion began, centuries ago, we've been turned into servants to the state, our labor is exploited by the government and is used to back up the debts these criminals run up so high that Jack's Beanstalk pales in comparison. Think about it, you are what the government uses to back their bonds. Your labor and your children's labor in the future. We are nothing more than bond servants to them, allowing them to issue servant bonds to support their spending sprees, graft and corruption. Now if that doesn't make you mad, I don't know what will. What do you think "backed by the full faith and credit of the United States" means? The government bodies do nothing that produces a product or any form of profit, they are there to restrain the people

only because we put it above God.....our government is not made in a vacuum.......the government is there to prevent chaos/anarchy.....so who
gets that job? and why do we keep giving it to them.......when wisdom is in short supply we starve......

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AS OTHERS SAY IT Tighten reins on bailout money

    It is beyond disturbing that banks across the country that received bailout money from the federal government claim they do not know how they’re spending the money.
    The American taxpayers, who had to bail these banks out of financial crisis, deserve a better explanation.
    There is nothing in place to ensure if the money is being used as intended. Without controls or accountability, for all we know some of this money could be used for corporate bonuses, junkets or to buy other banks. And there are no consequences for banks that don’t use it for the purposes intended by Congress.
    Part of the problem lies with Congress, which attached hardly any strings to the bailout money.
    The other part of the problem is that the Treasury Department never asked banks how the money would be spent when they handed it out. This is a slap in the face to those in Congress that voted to provide the $700 billion to the banks, and most of all it is unfair to taxpayers. We were pleased to learn that lawmakers want to tighten the restrictions on ...................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....amp;EntityId=Ar00702

> >> Remember Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued Chrysler
> >> Corporation
> >> from its death throes? He's now 82 years old and has a new book, 'Where
> >> Have All The Leaders Gone?'.
> >>
> >> Lee Iacocca Says:
> >>
> >> 'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's
> >> happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody
> >> murder! We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state
> >> right
> >> over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we
> >> can't
> >> even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But
> >> instead
> >> of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the
> >> politicians say, 'Stay the course.'
> >>
> >> Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America ,
> >> not
> >> the damned, 'Titanic'. I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the bums
> >> out!'
> >>
> >> You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my
> >> rocker,
> >> and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this
> >> country anymore.
> >>
> >> The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the
> >> guys in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq , the Middle East is
> >> burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving
> >> 'pom-poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of
> >> the '
> >> America ' my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had
> >> enough. How about you?
> >>
> >> I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if
> >> you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. The
> >> Biggest 'C' is Crisis ! (Iacocca elaborates on nine C's of leadership,
> >> with
> >> crisis being the first.)
> >>
> >> Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of
> >> crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk
> >> theory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a
> >> battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes
> >> tumbling down.
> >>
> >> On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any
> >> other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the
> >> ashes. A hell of a mess, so here's where we stand..
> >>
> >> We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the country.
> >>
> >> We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our
> >> once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs.
> >>
> >> Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent
> >> energy policy. Our schools are in trouble.
> >>
> >> Our borders are like sieves.
> >>
> >> The middle class is being squeezed every which way.
> >>
> >> These are times that cry out for leadership.
> >>
> >> But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all
> >> the
> >> leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are
> >> the
> >> people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense?
> >> I
> >> may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point.
> >>
> >> Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security
> >> than
> >> making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?
> >>
> >> We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy,
> >> and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.
> >>
> >> Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane
> >> Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response
> >> to
> >> the hurricane or demanding accountability for the decisions that were
> >> made
> >> in the crucial hours after the storm.
> >>
> >> Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't
> >> happen again. Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a
> >> plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time.
> >>
> >> Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how
> >> we
> >> can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have
> >> believed
> >> that there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese
> >> car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going
> >> to
> >> do about it?
> >>
> >> Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying
> >> down the debit, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care
> >> problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are
> >> eating
> >> away at our country and milking the middle class dry.
> >>
> >> I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit
> >> on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is
> >> being
> >> hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is
> >> everybody so afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will call them a
> >> name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change?
> >>
> >> Had Enough? Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and
> >> doom
> >> here. I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope -
> >> I
> >> believe in America . In my lifetime, I've had the privilege of living
> >> through some of America 's greatest moments. I've also experienced some
> >> of
> >> our worst crises: The 'Great Depression,' 'World War II,' the 'Korean
> >> War,'
> >> the 'Kennedy Assassination,' the 'Vietnam War,' the 1970's oil crisis,
> >> and
> >> the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11.
> >>
> >> If I've learned one thing, it's this: 'You don't get anywhere by
> >> standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action.
> >> Whether
> >> it's building a better car or building a better future for our children,
> >> we
> >> all have a role to play. That's the challenge I'm raising in this book.
> >> It's
> >> a "Call to Action" for people who, like me, believe in America '. It's
> >> not
> >> too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let' s shake off the crap
> >> and
> >> go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough.'
> >>
> >> Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know
> >> and care about. It's our country, folks, and it's our future. Our future
> >> is
> >> at stake!!

This was excellent to say the least! But how do you wake the sheople? No body cares! Everyone, like us, just sit at our computers and bit** about the obvious injustice. We are no different. We aggravate ourselves with the knowledge we have, but apparently feel helpless to make a difference. And when we see someone take a stand, we also see the governmental beast, some how, some way, squash it!

It's not just government. It is also the greedy corporations. The greedy unions. And now the greedy global economy. And what is most shocking, is that with our country in this almost financial collapse caused by corruption, the sheople are actually concerned about global warming. Should Jesus be part of Christmas? What word can you use that will not offend a black person? Is it against the law to draw or display a 'noose'. (give me a break) Should soda be taxed? Is Madonna really getting divorced? Is Bran and Angelina having another kid? Botox..should I or shouldn't I?  And the stupid list goes on!

This all didn't happen overnight. We all sat back, in our own little worlds and did not pay attention. Well here we are now and the sheople don't have not even a clue on what to do or even where to begin.

Iaccocca says we need a great leader. I don't know about anyone else, but I have just about had my fill of these so called 'great leaders'.

Quoted Text

Bush 'flagrantly' disobeying law in using TARP funds
Jim Brown - OneNewsNow - 1/2/2009 7:00:00 AM

A regulatory expert says President Bush is flagrantly ignoring the law by using money from the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) for a second bailout of General Motors.

The government's bailout of the auto industry has swelled to $23.4 billion after the White House committed to send GM and its financing arm an extra $6 billion.

The Treasury Department plans to purchase a $5-billion equity stake in GMAC, the financing arm of GM, and give GM an additional billion dollars to in turn buy stock in GMAC. The $6 billion will come from the $700 billion Wall Street bailout package that President Bush and Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson repeatedly said would only be used for financial institutions.

James Gattuso, a senior regulatory expert at the Heritage Foundation, says although not surprising, President Bush's second auto bailout in less than two weeks may be a sign of worse things to come.

"We've always had a free market economy," he explains, "which means that companies rise and fall based upon what consumers say they want and how well [companies] manufacture a product without the government choosing who should win and who should lose in the marketplace."

According to Gattuso, such government intervention is more of a European approach to industrial policy. "And [it's] one that we've rejected, for good reasons, and have benefited from [rejecting]," he adds.

"And...regardless of the economics and the substance involved here, the fact that the law is apparently being flagrantly ignored is of outmost concern -- and certainly, people should be outraged."

Gattuso notes that by its terms, the TARP legislation authorized to bailout Wall Street is limited to financial institutions. The Bush administration, he says, has yet to present a decent explanation of how its use of TARP funds for the auto industry is legal, let alone advisable.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=370604

Wait until Obama and his crew start to hand out the money, you ain't seen nothing yet they'll make Bush and company look like misers.

Obama thinks he will stimulate the economy by putting people to work on the country's infrastructure. Ya, that's the ticket. That's just a bandaid covering a severed artery.

How about the oil in Alaska? How about encouraging in-sourcing instead of out-sourcing? How about charging and import taxon all foreign products that 'must' come into this country. Let's face it, our country is the 'buying mecca' of the world. So if they wanna send their products here for us to buy, then pay a tax on them when they come across our boarders. IMHO

I have a feeling that all the talk about this new administration drilling for oil off shore, in Alaska, and building new nuclear reactors was all lip service to win the election and the far left eco-nuts will never let it happen. Obama already said that anyone whose power is generated by a coal fired generating plant will be paying much higher rates for their power due to the carbon tax he wants to apply on the coal burning plants. Fasten your seat belts folks is going to be a rough couple of years ahead.