"Lives in Danger" at AIG

Working for a vilified corporate titan is not easy these days, but for AIG execs, Monday was a day they probably should have stayed at home. Death threats against employees, possible fresh subpoenas, indignation from lawmakers and a vow from President Obama himself to make the taxpayers whole again all added to the public drama around the stricken insurer's controversial $165 million bonus payout. " It's a mob effect ," a senior AIG executive told The Washington Post , describing the level of public outrage directed at the company and its employees. "It's putting people's lives in danger." The epicenter of the outrage on Monday came from Washington. Even though Treasury officials knew of the planned payout for months, they only voiced their indignation just as the checks were being cut over the past few days. President Obama added his outrage to the AIG bonus furore , vowing to "pursue every single legal avenue to block" the payouts. But, The Wall Street Journal reports, "hours later, ... (link)