After $100 Million in AIG Bonuses, Will House Republicans Finally Support Wall Street Reform?

The American people are outraged at reports that AIG will hand out $100 million in bonuses to executives in the same divisions whose actions helped precipitate the worst economic meltdown in 70 years. As reform legislation is considered by Congress, will House Republicans stand with Main Street instead of Wall Street?

Let's look at the record. Those same Republicans who support privatizing Social Security and handing seniors' retirement over to Wall Street continue to stand behind big banks by consistently opposing common sense Wall Street reforms, corporate accountability and taxpayer protections.

The facts:

The House passed H.R. 384 in January 2009 to retroactively prohibit TARP-assisted institutions from granting golden parachutes to senior executives and granting bonuses to the top 25 executives. 90% (156) of House Republicans voted NO.

The House passed the Pay for Performance Act (H.R. 1664) in April 2009 to prohibit TARP-assisted institutions, and housing finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, from granting unreasonable or excessive compensation and bonuses not based on performance. 94% (163) of House Republicans voted NO.

The House passed the Corporate and Financial Institution Compensation Fairness Act (H.R. 3269) in July 2009 to give shareholders a say on pay and on golden parachutes; require compensation committees in corporate boards to be made up of independent directors; require financial institutions, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to disclose their compensation structures if they include bonuses; and empower bank regulators to prohibit risky compensation practices if they imperil a bank's safety and soundness. 99% (164) of House Republicans voted NO.

The House passed the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (H.R. 4173) in December 2009 to bring transparency and accountability to our financial system, reform corporate pay practices, protect consumers from predatory lending practices, foster corporate responsibility, and end Bush-era taxpayer-funded bailouts. 100% of House Republicans voted NO.

The Wall Street Reform bill also reduced incentives for risky compensation by providing regulators with authority to prohibit proprietary trading, and to limit the size of large financial institutions when their excessive risk-taking threatens financial stability. 100% of House Republicans voted NO.