When they act like it's a crisis, part 37B

Investors Business Daily offers a one-two combination punch today on the bank bailout.  Yesterday, I wrote about the AP’s discovery that banks didn’t want to discuss what they have done with the bailout money they got from Henry Paulson and George Bush.  Today, IBD notes that they have 1.6 billion reasons to keep their mouths shut:

In any real crisis, everyone sacrifices to weather the storm. But the panicky $700 billion bailout that Congress approved for 116 banks in the fall shows an entirely different sense of urgency.

On Sunday, the Associated Press found that $1.6 billion of bailout cash was converted to gravy for 600 bankers. They got bonuses, club dues, financial planners, corporate jet travel, daily limousines and home security systems, courtesy of the taxpayers….

It’s obvious these banker bonuses had no correlation to productivity or performance. In the real world, enterprises provide such benefits only when executives produce results — that is, profits.

On Monday, for example, executives of Caterpillar gave up compensation to ensure that their firm would survive. The banks — especially investment banks — seem to play by different rules.

Michael Ramirez puts it a little more succinctly:

The Treasury should immediately recall the $1.6 billion in funds given to these bankers from the bailout money transmitted to these banks.  Paulson and everyone on that team should get the boot for allowing that to happen.  If these banks had $1.6 billion available for executive bonuses, then they should have used that to operate their businesses rather than coming hat in hand to taxpayers.  It’s a great example of why failing private enterprise should never get government bailouts and should be forced to make the tough decisions necessary for survival.

Ramirez has a terrific collection of his works: Everyone Has the Right to My Opinion, which covers the entire breadth of Ramirez’ career, and it gives a fascinating look at political history.  Read my review here, and watch my interviews with Ramirez here and here.