IMAO: Obama Says That Banking Plan Must Rein In Executive Pay
WASHINGTON (AP) Senator Barack Obama, whose net worth is estimated at over $7 million, said he was concerned the new banking bailout plan did not include provisions to limit the pay of business executives.
âUnlike people who work for a living, I deserve to keep my money.â
In his first comments on the historic government intervention, Mr. Obama, whose income from book royalties will likely exceed $4 million this year, said he believed the plan held âpromiseâ for helping average Americans not raking in seven figures, but added that new regulatory requirements needed to accompany the infusions of cash into banks.
âIf weâre just giving them money, but weâre not making sure that they are curbing some of the excessive risks that got us into the mess in the first place,â Mr. Obama, who has more money in tax-free municipal bonds than most American will earn in their working lifetimes, told reporters, âthen we are just continuing the same philosophy that has failed the American people so badly.â
Mr. Obama, who was sequestered at a resort near Lake Erie that he could freakinâ buy outright if he felt like it as he prepared for the upcoming debate, said he wanted to review the detailed proposal before rendering a final judgment.
âWe need to crack down on excessive CEO pay - I think that should be part of the deal,â said Mr. Obama, whose Hart Schaffner Marx suit would cost normal people 2 monthsâ wages.
âItâs not fair for some people to make millions while failing to do the job they were hired to do. That wealth should be spread around more,â concluded Obama, who will earn almost $170,000 this year while missing more than half of the Senate votes.
