Breaking: Obama Orders Treasury Sec to Block AIG Bonuses

From the NYT:

“In the last six months, A.I.G. has received substantial sums from the U.S. Treasury,” Mr. Obama said. He added that he had asked Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner “to use that leverage and pursue every single legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole.”

In strongly-worded remarks delivered in the White House East Room before small business owners, Mr. Obama called A.I.G. “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 A.I.G. warranted any bonuses at all, much less $165 million in extra pay,” Mr. Obama said. “How do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?”

Thank you, Mr. POTUS. The Board of Directors ought to be held accountable for this too.

Oh, and if you wish to sign the petition to bring these clowns to be held accountable by Congress, go to FireDogLake.

Watch the video here (courtesy of Daily Kos TV):


And it sounds like there are some options. Glenn Greenwald has more on it here.