AIG, Under Pressure, Trims Ousted CEO's Golden Parachute

(MoneyWatch)  American International Group, under pressure from New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo, is trimming ousted CEO Martin Sullivan's payout package valued at $68 million by $19 million.

The troubled insurance giant, which has received a $85 billion bailout from the federal government, is also slashing perks, junkets and 160 conferences after drawing criticism from Congress.

Dubbed the "Poster Boy" for excessive executive compensation, Sullivan was kicked out of office in June after shareholders and investors complained that the insurance and financial giant posted two quarters of losses.

Sullivan had a tough time from the start of his tenure. He had to restate several years' worth of earnings, paid out $1.64 billion for fraud and bid-rigging issues, and got stuck in the mud of the subprime mortgage swamp.

Three months after Sullivan left, A.I.G. was nearly bankrupt. The U.S. Treasury Department bought $85 billion of the firm to prop it up, noting that the firm's failure would create more devastation for the rest of the global financial sector.

My takeaway: Is $19 million enough of a cut?

This post first appeared on BNET's The Corner Office blog.