Joshua Zumbrun, 03.16.09, 07:25 PM EDT
Anger grows over AIG’s employee payouts, but it may not amount to much.
When word got out that AIG, the failed insurer that exists thanks only to $170 billion of taxpayer money, would be paying out $165 million to honor employee retention payouts, the response was swift, sharp and predictable.
President Barack Obama said the government would “pursue every legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole.” New York State Attorney GeneralĂ‚Â Andrew Cuomo sent a letter Monday to AIG (nyse: AIG – news – people )’s (nyse: AIG – news – people ) management demanding to know if the employees getting the money were involved in the company’s bad bets, and demanded to see the precise terms of the contracts.
