Totally unsurprising at this point:
Several financial giants that received federal bailout money in the last year paid out bonuses to employees in 2008 that greatly exceeded the amount of profit generated by the banks, according to a study on executive compensation released by New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo Thursday.
Despite claims by bank executives that bonuses are tied to the company's performance, the report states that "there is no clear rhyme or reason to how the banks compensate or reward their employees."
Cuomo's investigation "suggests a disconnect between compensation and bank performance that resulted in a 'heads I win, tails you lose' bonus system."
We're talking Goldman Sachs here, of course, which earned $2.3 billion, received $10 billion in TARP funds and doled out more than double its earnings -- $4.8 billion, to be exact -- in bonus booty. But they weren't alone: Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch ... a veritable festival of handouts to the very people who steered the economic Titanic into the financial iceberg.
Please, tell us all again how much more efficient private industry is at sorting out the worthy in competitive markets ....