AIG’s ill-timed junket
The politics of a $440,000 post-bailout luxury retreat
Days after the U.S. bailed out insurance giant AIG to the tune of $85 billion, said David Lazarus in the Los Angeles Times, senior executives took a “jaw-dropping” $440,000 trip to Southern California’s “ultra-swanky St. Regis Resort,” including a $23,000 spa bill. Congress wasn’t amused when the “post-bailout getaway” was revealed in a House Oversight Committee hearing.
To be fair, in his “congressional humiliation” session AIG’s chief executive said the event was inappropriate and he would have stopped it “if anyone had told him,” said Floyd Norris in The New York Times online. But seriously, “if Wall Street wanted to outrage the nation, could it do a better job than it is doing now?”
AIG’s “frolic at the resort” could actually be useful for the “average American taxpayer” to latch on to, said the Vermont Times Argus in an editorial. “Ordinary people” may not understand “all the nuances and subtleties” behind the $700 billion Wall Street bailout, but they “surely recognize greed” and the need to affix “political responsibility.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
What are Lucy Letby's grounds of appeal?
In depth Convicted former nurse's legal team claims judge at original trial wrongly refused her applications
By The Week UK Published
-
Grindr 'shared user HIV status' with ad firms, lawsuit claims
Speed Read LGBTQ dating app accused of breaching UK data protection laws in case filed at London's High Court
By Rebecca Messina, The Week UK Published
-
The best dog-friendly hotels around the UK
The Week Recommends Take a break with your four-legged friend in accommodation that offers you both a warm welcome
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published