A.I.G. Burning Through $123 Billion Fed Loan With No Explanation

New York Times:

The American International Group is rapidly running through $123 billion in emergency lending provided by the Federal Reserve, raising questions about how a company claiming to be solvent in September could have developed such a big hole by October. Some analysts say at least part of the shortfall must have been there all along, hidden by irregular accounting.

"You don't just suddenly lose $120 billion overnight," said Donn Vickrey of Gradient Analytics, an independent securities research firm in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[whatsittake]

I admit I missed this posting last week, but from the number of comments, I must not be alone or not many understand how bad the situation really is.

I hope the country gives Obama a lot of slack, because he will have an impossible job. Any action that will eventually help the country or the world will not be pleasant and will be met by unparalleled violent opposition.

If you are not protecting yourself against a coming worthless US dollar (or any fiat currency, for that matter), then you should start now. We have not seen the worst of the economic disaster.

[Constituent Response]

The Constituent Response Team has put together a Bailout Vote Map that makes it easy (as a mouse click) to find out how your Senators and Representatives voted. Tell all your family and friends about it, so they can find out how their Representative and Senators voted before they cast their ballot on Tuesday. 

The Constituent Response Team has also just published pre-customized web banners and ads targeted at those who voted "yes" for the Bailout. You can easily paste these ads onto your website or blog (or social networking site) using simple embedding code (provided off course). If your Senator or Congress member voted for the Bailout, a customized web-banner probably already exists to assist you in getting the word out to vote against them.

If you are interested in either, check out Constituent Response at http://www.constituentresponse.com . The Bailout Vote Map is on the main page; the "Vote 'no" on incumbents who voted 'yes'" ads are under the Host CRT Ads link.

[pjburns11]

Round them up, take back their stolen money, balance Bush's bull**** budget,
Spit upon all of them and throw them in jail! OIL Goons, Bank Leaches, and the Executive Admin that paved their way. Pitooooey!

http://thetruthburns.wordpress.com/2008/10/24/put-these-wall-street-criminals-where-they-belong/

[PT6]

Our Government should take-over AIG for two years!

Then Clean Out the incompetent management and put in managers that will serve AMERICA!

When the cost structure is brought under CONTROL Take them PRIVATE again!

Otherwise they will squander the BAILOUTS!

Bailouts that could be used to CONVERT GM and FORD to "GREEN Companies" for the Future!

[PT6]

Our Government shoult take-over AIG for two years!

Then Clean Out the incompetent management and put in managers that will serve AMERICA!

When the cost structure is brought under CONTROL Take them PRIVATE again!

Otherwise they will squander the BAILOUTS!

Bailouts that could be used to CONVERT GM and FORD to "GREEN Companies" for the Future!

[Sherzie]

Congress has 'AIG' on its face.

[darthdarcy]

We should have had a bottom up solution from the start reset the Sub Prime Mortgages at around 6-6.25% and forgive all penalties to date 1/2 of which are illegal anyway..

We are just flushing good money after bad..

It's like pumping billion into the abyss..

Paulson can't be trusted neither can any Goldman Sachs agents and saboteurs...

[Sherzie]

Congress should have required involuntary receivership of AGI before handing over a dime to that corporation. This bailout is just another Bush quagmire - helping out the overpaid and incompetent AGI executives and managers. Has anyone researched how much AGI gave to Bush, the RNC, the DNC and members of congress?

I hope that Obama's economic plan includes:
1) New legislation that American corporations cannot use offshore banks.
2) Place a tax surcharge on corporate executive salaries in excess of $1,000,000 a year, when the coporation does not make a profit and dividends are not paid to shareholders.
3) Oversight so that future 'bailout money' is used for its intended purposes ... such as cash infusion to banks for solvency and consumer loans, not acquisitions.

Bush's rush to bailout is as bad as his pointless and needless Iraqi war. Congress should have done its job and insisted on extensive oversight.

What a mess!

[GerryS]

That giant sucking hole we see and hear has the black hole of republicanism greed in the middle.

But its not like a regular black hole that nothing escapes, this one has a wire out the back to transfer funds.

[Phil Waste]

If you’re like me you are sick to death of being manipulated by the Republicans, Corporations and the millionaires and billionaires.

Do you ask yourselves as I do ‘why the price of gas drops precipitously a few weeks before each election’?

Do you also ask yourselves ‘why the stock market goes up just before each election’?

Do you ask yourself why this always favors the Republicans?

I don’t claim to know how they do this, all I know is the Republicans manage to do it every time.

The banks have screwed us royally and then bailed themselves out with over 700 billion dollars in workers tax money all the while they keep paying themselves bonuses worth millions and millions.

Enough is enough and I for one will not fall for this crap again.

I will vote against each and every Republican whether he or she claims to be a saint or not.

I’m done ‘stick a fork in me’ I won’t be screwed again by those wealthy Republicans.

[GreyWolfSC]

Time for that accountability garbage in the bailout bill to kick in. Time to boot people out of their jobs starting with AIG and ending with Congress.

[Vinca]

GreyWolfSC; Start with AIG, then get the rest of those crooks, I FEEL SURE THEY HAVE STACKS OF MONEY HIDDEN SOMEWHERE

[themodernleader]

The money went to pay off bad debt associated with playing innovative derivatives that will break our U.S. treasury in out attempt to bail out greed and folly. Paulson and Bernacke are destroying our future ability to deal with our incredible national debt.

[Deni]

Don't worry. Obama will be elected and the Pukes can quit blaming Clinton and start blaming Obama for this mess. Bush, just like every other f*ck up in his life of f*ck ups, will escape responsibility again. See? Everything will work out just fine.

[Joblogger]

With underestimated respect to Everett Dirksen, lose $8.8 Billion there http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=102045577), lose $120 billion here and, pretty soon, you're talking some real money.

[patianneb]

Nationalize them.

[DomainDiva]

AIG needs to be shut down immediately and the forensic accountants brought in to find out exactly what this company has been doing. The end results will probably make Enron look like a birthday party.