Rationalizing the $85 billion bailout of insurance giant American International Group in September, a Treasury official reaffirmed U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s comments on the need to “maintain the stability and orderliness of our financial system.” AIG executives had warned that the U.S. economy would face “systemic risks” if their company failed, and that handing over billions of dollars to save them from bankruptcy was in the country’s “national interest.”
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Just days after their grand theft of taxpayers’ dollars, AIG executives held a “retreat” at a posh California resort. While the U.S. working class was facing record home foreclosures, AIG spent over $1,000 per night on lavish hotel rooms for each of its top management. At a time when 47 million Americans have no health insurance for even the most basic care, AIG executives dropped $23,000 on manicures, pedicures and spa treatments. Food stamp use is at a near-record high, yet AIG casually spent $150,000 to feed a handful of their top executives.
But all this partying can get expensive. To give executives a little extra cushion, the Federal Reserve confirmed an additional $37.8 billion loan to AIG Oct. 8.
Unlike these corporate parasites and their cronies, workers are finding little reason to celebrate amidst the present economic turmoil. As the crisis crushes the living standards of working people, the elite of Wall Street sees no reason to deprive itself of its luxuries. Government and big finance capital work together to keep profits flowing to a privileged few—and when the party is over, it is always the workers who pick up the tab.
