Agence France-Presse, posted at www.inquirer.net on 09/26/2008
NEW YORK -- An angry US public and Congress
demanded Thursday to snip the rip cord on
golden parachutes used by fat cat CEOs to
escape Wall Street's mayhem.
Both Democrats and Republicans in Congress
insisted that an emergency multi-billion
dollar government bailout for the financial
industry include restrictions on executive
pay.
Their push caught the mood of a nation
sickened at watching the titans of finance
walk away from Wall Street disasters not
only unscathed, but enriched.
"The wealthiest people, those ... in the
best position to pay, are being asked for no
sacrifice at all," read a petition to
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, which on
Thursday, after three days, had 32,600
signatures.
The petition, organized by independent
Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont,
attacked what it described as the Treasury's
attempt to let bungling executives "continue
to make exorbitant salaries and bonuses."
Those gigantic pay checks, bonuses, and
Midas-like farewells encapsulate what the
public sees as Wall Street's greed�is�good
philosophy.
For example, the CEO of bankrupt Lehman
Brothers, Richard Fuld, was paid $22 million
in 2007, including stock options and other
compensation, according to a survey
published by USA Today.
Martin Sullivan, the chief executive of AIG,
who left the insurance giant before it was
rescued this month by the federal
government, received $14 million, the survey
said.
Even punishment for those at the center of
the chaos comes with a gold lining.
When the government took over collapsed
mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,
ousted bosses Daniel Mudd and Richard Syron
were not allowed $12.59 million worth in
severance payments.
Yet they still got out the door with $9.43
million in retirement benefits.
Public anger at such figures underlies
skepticism about the entire government
rescue.
"We'll never see that money again," said
Mathew May, a 24-year-old economics student
who skipped lectures to attend a small
demonstration at the iconic bronze bull
statue near the New York Stock Exchange.
"They deregulated the markets and ran wild.
Now we're bailing them out."
Leftist activist and writer Naomi Klein said
there was "socialism for the rich and
dog-eat-dog capitalism for the rest of us."
"Think about it: they said providing
healthcare for nine million children,
perhaps costing six billion dollars a year,
was too expensive, but there's evidently no
sum of money large enough that will sate the
Wall Street pigs."
But left-wingers are not the only ones
speaking out.
Newt Gingrich, the fiercely conservative
former speaker in the House of
Representatives, wrote in the National
Review that the bailouts, likely to top a
trillion dollars, smack of "crony
capitalism."
"Doesn�t that mean that we�re using the
taxpayers� money to hire people to save
their friends with even more taxpayer
money?" he asked.
Forbes, the magazine for and about the rich,
also says enough is enough.
"The compensation schemes for Wall Street
CEOs should be capped to a small fixed
amount," wrote national editor Robert
Lenzner.
"The rest should be dependent on performance
in a way that does not reward taking greater
risk than is prudent. If CEOs don't perform,
they should get nothing."
One worker in the New York finance sector,
who asked not to be named, told AFP that his
colleagues are as angry as the general
public.
"A lot of people are very upset that
managers in their own companies and captains
of industry in other areas made some really,
really bad decisions," he said.
"The most insulting thing is the golden
parachutes where these jackals from Fannie
and Freddie, having destroyed the company,
walked away with millions ... It all comes
down to greed."
