The outrage over AIG's $1.2 billion bonus pool is growing, with Congressmen of both parties asking the classic Washington D.C. question of Tim Geithner and other regulators: What did you know, and when did you know it?

"I don't know what President Obama knew about it. I'd say he probably didn't know about it," said Richard Shelby, the ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee. But Tim Geithner "either knew or should have known what was going on. We need to know, what are the details of this? When were the bonuses signed up? Who's getting it?"

According to a story in today's NY Times, AIG executives said they would never have proceeded with the bonus payments before getting approval from the Treasury and the Federal Reserve.

That is only ratcheting up the heat more on Treasury Secretary Geithner.

Congressman Elijah Cummings of Maryland said he raised objections back in December, when AIG paid $55 million in bonuses to its Financial Services Unit, the same group that lost $40.5 billion in 2008.

Regarding the $165 million pool paid on March 15, The Times reports Cumming said: "I assumed that [Treasury officials] were well aware of it and would take appropriate action" before the deadline.

Clearly not.

Now regulators and politicians are scrambling to both express their outrage and try and recoup bailout funds - or at the very least stop AIG's plan to disperse another $230 million in bonus money this year to the same rogue unit:

• On Tuesday, NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said AIG paid bonuses of $1 million or more to 73 employees, including 11 who no longer work for the company. AIG has refused to provide their names, despite Cuomo's subpoena; the AG said his office will do "everything necessary" to get the information.
• "What our Administration's doing is being as creative as we can with a group of lawyers working on this problem, using recoupment authority, employing other means to do everything we can within the law to address this situation," National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers said on CNBC.

On Monday, President Obama promised to "pursue every legal angle" but some politicians want to go a step further: In a radio interview Monday, Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley said he wants AIG executives "to follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I'm sorry, and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide."

Tuesday on MSNBC, Grassley declined to apologize for the remark, saying:  "I hope you recognize rhetoric."

Yes we do Senator, yes we do. There's a lot of rhetoric coming out of Washington D.C. this week as everyone tries to distance themselves from the AIG disaster, which just keeps getting worse and worse.


Courtesy of
http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/article/210643/AIG-Bonuses-What-Did-You-Know-When-Did-You-Know-It?tickers=AIG,GS,XLF,FAS,C,BAC