January 29, 2009 3:56 PM

Obama Calls Wall Street Bonuses "Shameful"

By
Brian Montopoli
Topics
Economy
(AP)

Despite massive losses and huge taxpayer-funded bailouts, Wall Street handed out more than $18 billion in bonuses last year.

President Obama today called such bonuses "shameful," deeming them "the height of irresponsibility."

As the New York Times reported, last year's bonus payout marked the sixth largest such payout ever; while it was a smaller total than over the previous few years – the total paid out in bonuses fell 44 percent from 2007 – it roughly matched the bonus totals in 2004, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average was above 10,000.

It is reportedly "unclear" if taxpayer money helped fund the bonuses.

At a meeting with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner this afternoon, Mr. Obama was harshly critical of the bonuses.

When "they are asking for taxpayers to help sustain them, and when taxpayers find themselves in the difficult position that if they don't provide help, that the entire system could come down on top of our heads, that is the height of responsibility," the president said. "It is shameful."

"And part of what we're going to need is for the folks on Wall Street, who are asking for help, to show some restraint, and show some disciple, and show some sense of responsibility," he continued. "The American people understand that we've got a big hole that we've got to dig ourselves out of, but they don't like the idea that people are digging a bigger hole even as they're bing asked to fill it up."

The president promised further conversations with Wall Street "to underscore that they have to start acting in a more responsible fashion if we are to together get this economy rolling again."

"There will be time for them to make profits, and there will be time for them to get bonuses," Mr. Obama said. "Now's not that time. And that's a message I intend to send directly to them."

Add a Comment See all 184 Comments
by wardoglrs February 1, 2009 9:22 AM EST
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?


As we leave July "our independence month"And move to our future of hope for the Constitution and Americana I tip my head to these great men of valor.
And to the Ron Paul Revolution and any one who stands on the ground of Peace Freedom & Liberty



Five signers were captured by the British as traitors,and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army

another had two sons captured.Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or
hardships of the Revolutionary War.They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes,and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.Eleven were merchants,
nine were farmers and large plantation owners men of means, well educated,
but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured
Reply to this comment
by wardoglrs February 1, 2009 9:21 AM EST
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.

He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,
Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed,and Nelson died bankrupt. Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.

The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.John Hart was driven from his wife''s bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It''s not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!
Reply to this comment
by wardoglrs February 1, 2009 9:18 AM EST
THE ANSWER IS GOLD & SILVER NOT FIAT PAPER

To have a working currency, you need to have adequate total exchange value to cover all the transactions in the economy at any given moment. Does all the gold and silver in the world currently have enough exchange value to replace all existing fiat currency? No. But here is why that doesn''t matter - THE EXCHANGE VALUE OF GOLD AND SILVER WILL RISE IN RESPONSE TO INCREASED DEMAND AS A MEDIUM OF EXCHANGE UNTIL IT REACHES THE NEEDED LEVEL.

Think of it another way. Imagine that you now need to pay your employee one ounce of gold a month for him to do his job. The increased demand for gold will drive up its exchange value (remember the law of supply and demand) because it will be in demand for use as money. So then you only have to pay your employee half an ounce of gold. The same amount of gold goes twice as far. It is as if the supply of money has increased to meet the demand without causing a loss of value the way inflating a fiat currency does.

The market will adjust the exchange value of gold and silver to meet demand.
Reply to this comment
by wardoglrs February 1, 2009 9:16 AM EST
OBAMA SHOULD TALK.
This is the guy that voted for the FISA bill to spy on you Voted for the bail outs which hurts the dollar and the poor for food & shelter and the people rally round this man. I thought you all wanted CHANGE.
Government cant CHANGE any more than you can stop smoking or eating junk food it just doesn''t work when people tell other people how to be. Leave us along we want Freedom from collectivization this is brainless & unthinkable that people look to a higher power in Government. GET A LIFE
Reply to this comment
by renojmc January 31, 2009 4:52 PM EST
So these bonuses are "shameful" to Obama, but it''s perfectly okay for his cabinet appointees to not pay taxes? What a hypocrite!
Reply to this comment
by mom_o_truth January 31, 2009 3:43 PM EST
Thank to D-I-C-Ks Administration for creating and breading a culture of scrupulous greedy Mother-Fus who owe us $500B sucked at the gas pumps, $300B lost in 401ks, over $450B spent on a useless war and ruined our lives. WHO IS THE TERRORIST NOW ?
Reply to this comment
by dumdnc January 31, 2009 1:42 PM EST
I forgot one shameful act of the chosen one in my post last evening. I forgot the 5.2 BILLION in the "stimulus" port filled package for the chosen ones very own uban army ACORN!! Guess you could say your guy is spending his first few weeks paying back debts.
Now, if we, as taxpayers, were to demand (a word the libs love)that acorn account for how they spend the money, would we be called racists??
Reply to this comment
by catwolfe1 January 31, 2009 11:32 AM EST
Well, cool - but what about going after the OIL COMPANIES? Exxon-Mobil making 45 million PROFIT while I can''t afford gas to go get my prescriptions?
Reply to this comment
by geneonlbk January 31, 2009 11:13 AM EST
It''s quite simple. If you want to continue to work for any financial institution receiving TARP funds, you either return your bonus or seek employment at some other non-TARP funded company.
Reply to this comment
by sparks224 January 31, 2009 5:22 AM EST
The Welfare Kings of Wall Sreet.

Now we know all that "Free Market" talk is B.S.
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