McCain Defends Fiorina's Golden Parachute

This weekend, John McCain defended unhelpful surrogate Carly Fiorina's generous severance package from Hewlett Packard:

"I think she did a good job as CEO in many respects," McCain told "The Today Show's" Meredith Vieira when she pressed him on the matter in light of McCain's recent accusations of greed on Wall Street.

"I know that she was a very successful businesswoman. Started out as a part-time secretary and made her way to the top of the corporate ladder as one of the biggest CEOs in the United States of America," McCain said after noting that he was unaware of the specifics of her compensation package.

Fiorina received $21 million in severance pay when she was fired as CEO of Hewlett Packard in 2005. She received an additional $21 million when Hewlett Packard's board bought out her company stock options and pension benefits. Her compensation package sparked a lawsuit from shareholders.

McCain admitted, however, that he was not familiar with the details of Fiorina's payout:

McCAIN: I don't think so. ... Because I think she did a good job as CEO in many respects. I don't know the details of her compensation package. But she's one of many advisers that I have.

Q: But she did get a $45 million dollar golden parachute after being fired while 20,000 of her employees were laid off.

McCAIN: I have many of the people, but I do not know the details of what happened.

McCain has vowed to end "multimillion dollar payouts to CEO's who have broken the public trust."

Watch:

Comments

[tschlak]

So, let me get this straight (talk express)...

She's hired on one of the most visible campaign surrogates, and probably the most well-known of the non-politicians. Obviously, this was to increase McCain's perceived business bonafides.

And yet, despite her infamy for sending HP into the toilet, downsizing 1000's of US workers and then leaving the company in scandal for using internal corporate spies to get dirt on her detractors, and THEN getting a criminal $42 million, McCain doesn't "know the details of what happened?????"

Is this utterly clueless idiot who we want running our country??!!!

[johnnyjust]

Here's an example for you:

If you don't like the service at McDonald's you speak to the manager.

In a corporation, the shareholders are the manager.

[BearsLeft]

You think shareholders are responsible for day-to-day operations?

My, you really are stuckin' foopid aren't you?

[katlade]

No, but if you are a paying customer and you think that day-to-day operations are lacking then your next step is to report it to the shareholders. They hold the power to change.

[DeadHorse]

Ok, so she did a "a good job" as head of HP. And she cost the company something like 20K jobs. She gets 40+ million to go away, and all the people who lost their jobs get diddly. I bet a great many of those people who lost their jobs as a result of ms Fiorina's failings did "a good job" as well. And look what that got them.

[EvasDaddy]

In defense of Carly Fiorina, she is an infinitely more qualified executive that Sarah Palin. (Faint praise, I know.)

The real problem seems to be with McCain's judgment of character. Must be something in the water on the straight jacket express.

[glesslib]

The Straight Jacket Express...­.absolutel­y love it!

[SatinPanties]

"In defense of Carly Fiorina, she is an infinitely more qualified executive that Sarah Palin. (Faint praise, I know.)"

Heck ! The chicken bones I just threw out from my lunch are more qualified than the AK-Guv!

[milo h minderbinder]

As Peter Gabriel once sang...
http://www.lyricsfreak.com/p/peter+gabriel/i+dont+remember_20107432.html

[SimonNZ]

This is crap. McBush knows exactly how much Carly got but he took the lesser of two evils and decided to play dumb. This was the tactic he used with his houses. I'm sure he knows exactly how many he owns, but he gambled that saying "I'm not sure" was better than admitting there and then that he owned 7 or more.

[ZeusBoots]

He doesn't actually have to play dumb, he is really stupid. Remember he graduated 5th from the bottom in his class at the Naval Academy. He told a reporter that he was probably a worse than GWBush when it came to smarts! Isn't that comforting? He actually laughed when he said this!
I would not be a bit surprised if he didn't even look into her credentials, after all look at his choice for VP.
I can't imagine why more Americans aren't horrified at the prospect of his becoming President.
The press really needs to let the American people know that the Democrats outnumber Republicans and would win the election easily IF they just got up off their behinds and voted.
The stats used to be 2 Dems to 1 Reps. A professor told me once that in actuality the Dems should always win, but many do not vote, and that is why idiots like Bush/McCain get in positions of power.

[Nancy84]

Can't you just see the polls changing as we sit here?

[johnnyjust]

Agreed. McCain/Palin!

[tschlak]

LOL!!

[glesslib]

Sad, just sad!

[Eoin45]

Ha, ha, ha. You're such a funny satirist JohnnyJust­PlainDumb.

[foxbat]

Any CEO who's fired for just cause shouldn't get anymore than the maximum severance package given to employees who were laid off during the CEO's tenure. HP employees got, on average, 3 months of severance. Fiorina's cash was around $21million and non-cash compensation, added to that, worked out some 20-30 YEARS of severance.

While she did rise up from a secretary, you've got to look at the WHOLE story and not just the fairytale parts as McCain seems to do with most of these people, including himself. Fiorina's work at HP was bad by anyone's measuring stick and, when you look at what was going on at Lucent, there's some question as to how well she really did there too.

I'm sure she was on his team as a draw for women, but he certainly didn't do his homework. The same argument might be made for the VP choice as well. The more that we see, the more it seems that McCain's not the one running the show over there. If that's the case, the American public has less than two months to figure out who's running things because THAT'S who's going to be running things if McCain wins. He will end up looking very much like Bush.

[cdub1991]

McCain doesn't seem to mind having women on his team--as long as they are pretty for their age. Surely, it can't just be me who sees this...

[Grunty1]

Golden parachutes in general are incentive for these CEOs to fail! Fiorina personally ran two different companies into the ground, yet she is still able to find work in her field! She gets to collect a 10 year salary up front AND get a new job!

[righteousbrother]

the sad part is that he really doesn't know. he doesn't run his campaign. his campaign runs him. he was once his own man but now he's a puppet.

[glesslib]

That's kind of what happens when you are 72. A really good reason to be home bouncing grandkids on your knee rather than trying for the most difficult job in the world.

[Nancy84]

45 million is chump change to McCain. He has no clue what 45 thousand or even 45 hundred would do for the average American.


Out of touch??? Oh yah!!

[macohmz]

I listened to her on a Youtube video talking about "integrity" and "character" and "ethics". Code words that actually mean; "I'm just a greedy, selfish, self-centered ----. Give me my millions and I'll go away!"

[dmsdzinr]

WHY is this TURDBUCKET still in the news??? Didn't the McCain Campaign make her disappear?
I say IF the Federal Government has to save your FAILED company's proverbial BUTT, then The shareholders get SQUAT and the FAILED CEO's get NADA/ZIPPO!!!

[Janel]

Does anyone out there wonder how McCain, Bush and the many CEO's. . .who failed at their jobs yet rewarded with huge severance packages after leaving employees high and dry. . .can sleep at night?

[Whinger]

George, you've been talking to the fairies at the bottom of the rose garden, again!