And here's his response. It's the right attitude, but I would far rather see massive bank regulation reform and finance industry reform. This smacks of just another fee/tax/fundraiser.
Petition to impose new fee on banks.
Dear Mr. President,
I live in New York, home of Wall Street. And my attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, has told the nation's biggest banks and financial firms that he wants an answer by February 8th about their plans for bonuses for fiscal year 2009. They're "considering his request."
According to the Wall Street Journal, "On a conference call with reporters, Mr. Cuomo said his office sent letters Monday to eight banks and Wall Street firms that received bailout funds in 2008 under the U.S. government's Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. The TARP money has since been repaid.
The attorney general said he is seeking details on the compensation paid by the banks for 2009, as well as information on how the compensation and bonus plans were determined and the scope and magnitude of lending by those firms."
Where are you?
Politico reports that Barney Frank's House Financial Services Committee is preparing to look into those bonuses and compensation packages.
What are you doing? You authorized the bailout, convinced that it was necessary to prevent a total economic collapse.
I'm not saying you were wrong. I just don't know. But what is clear now is that happy days are here again for the authors of this recession and they're using taxpayer money to pay themselves handsomely for their performance.
They're getting grilled by the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, but meanwhile, those bonus checks are being cut.
The people whose money they're using are jobless or underemployed. They're retirees whose retirement savings are gone. They're people who are losing their homes.
We the People are paying those bonuses, Mr. President. Our grandchildren will be paying for them.
We elected you to represent us. Our only power, other than a mass protest, a citizens' shut down, a refusal to participate, to keep those wheels turning, is you.
We are angry. We are frustrated. And we are counting on you to represent us, to put a halt to this obscenity.
Do the job you swore to do. If your advisors tell you it's not politically wise, then choose not to be wise.
This is very simple. What they're doing is wrong. Stop them.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Clusterf#@k to the Poor House - Wall Street Bonuses | ||||
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1 comment:
The whole bank thing is completely incomprehensible to me.
Yikes.
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