CalPERS To Vote Against BofA's Ken Lewis

The huge California Public Employees' Retirement System, or CalPERS, will vote against the re-election of Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis tomorrow at the bank's annual shareholder meeting.

The news, announced in a press release on CalPERS' web site, is a major blow to the already-beleaguered Lewis.

CalPERS, with more than 1.6 million benefit recipients, is the country's largest public pension fund. The fund, which has $176 billion in assets and owns 22.7 million shares in BofA, says it will also vote against the other 17 board members seeking re-election.

This is the first major shareholder to say it will vote against all 18 of the board members. Other firms, including ratings agency Egan-Jones, has called for the ouster of Lewis and some of the other board members.

"The entire board failed in its duties to shareowners and should be removed," CalPERS president Rob Feckner said in a statement. He cited the deteriorating condition of the bank; its failure to disclose the extent of Merrill Lynch's losses before it acquired the bank last year, and its seeming inaction when Merrill proceeded to hand out $3.6 billion in bonuses before the deal closed.

Comments

[Veri]

Don't worry. I am sure the BofA 18 have plenty of money and are laughing all the way (sic) to the bank. Of course, you don't.

[PhilipTaylor]

These Executives and Employees have taken so much of the Profits from their banks the Banks are Bankrupt!

These people who in 1980 made 20 times the average worker NOW MAKE 400 Times the Avg Worker!

Remember $10 to $100 Million Christmas Bonuses on top of $10 to $50 Million salaries!

They ruined their OWN Banks and want to continue while WE the taxpayers Bail their Banks OUT!

THEY RUINED THEIR OWN BANKS!

[PhilipTaylor]

Paulson=Forced BofA's CEO Ken Lewis to buy Merrill to avoiding bankruptcy and save face
Lewis=admitted in Congress, Paulson forced him to make the Merrill deal and shut up about it

[Carolab]

JPM forced Merrill into BoA's arms because of Dimon's thre-atened $10B collateral call on Merrill.

[PhilipTaylor]

Lets see what Obama, Geithner and his team are made of!

Obama and his Team are still NOT addressing the ROOT of the Problem, "NO CREDIT FLOWS" to Main Street!

$12,800,000,000,000 has been pumped into Wall Street (per Bloomberg) but almost nothing to Main Street other than a few half-baked low funded complicated programs that take forever to work!

As stated in the NY Times Wall Street OWNS the TEAM and it shows!

Obama could Fund a Government Bank that loans directly to Main Street over the Internet at low rates and fees to solve this problem. Even putting a couple $Trillion into local Community Banks and Local Credit Unions would be far more productive.

Instead we see another small program for second mortgages that will take forever to happen!

Is Main Street doomed to SUFFER while Wall Street claims Profits from the Team's funding?

[DailyElitist]

"More credit! More debt! We must have more debt - and quickly!"

Ummm... No.

[deadscout]

My only question is why is he trying to hang on? I've heard over and over that if we don't pay these gods incredible saleries and bonuses that they will quit and go somewhere else making a lot more money.

[1Eco]

Who would hire this guy and pay him the $126M he was making before everything started falling apart?

He is hoping he can pull another $300 or $450M out of the company before he leaves.

[plaidsportcoat]

I don't get it! Didn't BofA pass the stretched test? Also, they were about to pay all the bailout funds back, right? I mean, because they didn't need them, right? Golly, why would CalPers vote against such a great bank that's doing so well in the recession??

[senorlou]

Good god, didn't we trust the government with our money? Can you opt out of Calpers? Might be worth thinking about. I'm glad they're doing this, but I didn't want my money there in the first place. No matter what you do, the bankers get their piece of your action.

[apoyo]

Fire Ken Lewis!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!

[rockyersocksoff]

so, it takes a State to finally kick this kind of asss.

isn't it funny how one inept guy can be so entrenched that it takes a million people to remove him?

i thought America was founded so we wouldn't have to live under kings and princes

[Ranta]

When the manager of a team has a terrible record he gets fired. Why doesn't it work that way in corporate America.
Join Carl Icahn's United Shareholders of America...­.......It'­s free and informative.

http://www.icahnreport.com/

[Flight]

I hope there will be enough votes at the shareholder meeting to FINALLY hold this buffoon (and his board) accountable, and show him the door. Trust me -- his personal life is just as shady as his professional abilities.­..but, you won't see a media piece on that part. If BofA is to return to the point Hugh McColl had them before he retired, Lewis & Board must go. I subscribe to the school of thought that when business is good, money is flowing, all is fine. However, the true measure of a 'leader' is how they manage crisis when times are bad. As we all have learned so clearly -- Ken Lewis is NOT a leader by any stretch. What's really pathetic is the fact the Board refuses to acknowledge his poor leadership.

[stateMachine]

I've never seen a photo of Ken Lewis that betrayed anything other than pink faced, purse lipped, eye bulged outrage, apparently at having to share the air with the rest of us. One can only imagine photos subsequent to Calpers vote.

[metalpipe]

Wow, you go! I love those guys!

[SilviaMaria]

Great move! I signed the Proxy Card that will be delivered to the shareholders.

[DFL]

Good riddance to bad rubbish.

[Okieborn]

The Truth will tell if all of the CEO's are water boarded !!!