Barack Obama was outraged yesterday over the AIG bonuses. He was OUTRAGED. He saidyesterday:
This is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed.
Under these circumstances, it's hard to understand how derivative traders at AIG warranted any bonuses, much less $165 million in extra pay. How do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?
In the last six months, AIG has received substantial sums from the US Treasury. I've asked Secretary Geithner to use that leverage and pursue every legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole.
That was yesterday. That was after the public outrage grew over the news that AIG gave out huge bonuses to its employees while receiving massive taxpayer money.