John at Power Line Blog has a slightly different approach to President Obama's idea of controlling salaries of executives of government bailed-out companies. First of all, he restates his disagreement with the concept that taxpayer money shouldn't be sucked up by bonuses for executives in failing companies. He also restates the idea that he doesn't think the government should be investing money in failing companies in the first place.
It hasn't been mentioned a lot, but some of the banks involved in the bailout were forced by the federal government to accept the money. It's not really fair to force someone to take money then use that money as means of control. That idea is totally contrary to what democracy is supposed to be.
The article points out:
"A $500,000 cap on salaries? By all means...and let's extend this...to PBS for starters...no employee of any contractor to PBS or NPR...which are "substantially" subsidized by the taxpayers....is allowed compensation of more than $500,000....
And let's audit them all...they have a cozy arrangement where Bill Moyers, say, as big a left-wing hypocrite as you'll ever find, charges his production company scads of money, literally millions, and the production company simply has a contract with PBS....so, sure, no salaries....just "production costs" for PBS....Jim Lehrer does the same....the practice is widespread...
In fact, let's have some hearings to determine WHERE there are such unconscionable contracts underwritten by government subsidies.
So by all means....ANY government subsidized enterprise should have the SAME restrictions as the banks....and let's include vendors who are so dependent on government contracts ("substantial") that it amounts to a de facto subsidy....THAT will get some attention...
Or else let the banks do EXACTLY what PBS/NPR does....all the employees will go into several separate "operating companies"...think of them like Bill Moyers...and the banks, which will now be "portfolio companies" will contract with them for management and operations...what the operating and management companies pay their employees is their business....the banks, like PBS/NPR would just have contract expenses for management and operations."
We seem to have morphed into a "do as I say, not as I do" government. We need to change that. Term limits looks better all the time.
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