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Politics : A US National Health Care System? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: skinowski who wrote (10747)	10/27/2009 12:46:33 PM
From: John Koligman	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 42652

The problem is that these guys were apparently able to bring the system to the point of collapse. If you guys don't want government regulating this stuff, who will? John PS - The story gets better, a big chunk of those 'hundreds of billions' that went to AIG then went right into the pockets of the counterparties to AIG's trades, like Goldman Sachs. (Paid in full on their trades!) As a result, Goldman's Blankfein could say 'we are doin great'!, and hand out million dollar bonuses like halloween candy while average Americans continue to lose their jobs. I'm sure Goldman employees are 'thanking' you for your support... "Goldman Sachs defends $13-billion payment from AIG The Wall Street powerhouse says money it received from the bailed-out insurer was fully justified. Critics say Goldman should have agreed to take less than it was owed. By Jim Puzzanghera and Tom Hamburger\|March 21, 2009 Reporting from Washington — Beleaguered Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs Group switched to offense Friday, contending that the $13 billion the firm received from bailed-out American International Group Inc. was fully justified and in fact was good for taxpayers. But that did little to quell the criticism that Goldman and other financial institutions should have taken less than they were owed on insurance for their risky bets on the subprime housing market. Goldman Chief Financial Officer David Viniar said his company simply was trying to protect its shareholders -- which now include taxpayers after the firm received $10 billion in financial rescue money last fall. "If we had taken a discount, then we would have taken a loss to Goldman Sachs," Viniar said in a conference call with reporters convened by the company to address its involvement with AIG. "We also have taxpayer money at Goldman Sachs and it's part of our responsibility to protect that money and not lose it." But some lawmakers and others contended that holders of the insurance should have been forced to take less than 100% -- a haircut in Wall Street parlance -- because they would have gotten much less if AIG had been allowed to slip into bankruptcy. "If you invest in GM you're asked to take a huge haircut," said Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks). Sherman noted that terms of the federal bailout of General Motors Corp. required it to renegotiate deals with company bondholders. "But those who put their money in the AIG casino are told that you will be paid in full at the cost of the federal government," he said. Goldman received $13 billion -- more than any other financial institution -- in payment for AIG investment guarantees after the federal government stepped in with bailout commitments that now total as much as $172 billion to keep the insurance giant from failing. In the wake of outrage over its payment of $165 million in employee retention bonuses, AIG this week disclosed the names of dozens of banks and other institutions that it had paid last year after being bailed out by the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department."