WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), today expressed outrage over the $165 million in bonus payments to American International Group (AIG) and has written to President Obama applauding his directive to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to pursue “every single legal avenue” to rescind the bonuses.

Washington, DC—Senate Democrats sent a letter to the CEO of AIG today, warning executives to give up their bonuses or prepare for Congress to subject these excessive payments to severe tax penalties. “For a company that would not exist anymore but for a $170 billion taxpayer funded rescue, it is simply morally unacceptable to spend $165 million on bonus payments…” the Senators wrote.

"How can these executives take these bonuses? Have they no shame? Have they no sense of responsibility to the taxpayers of America who have agreed to help them? Have they no sense of decency as it relates to what is happening to literally millions of people around this country who have lost their jobs, lost their homes, have their homes at risk, lost their health insurance?"

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), outraged over $165 million in bonuses paid out by American International Group (AIG) to its executives, made the following statement about steps she is taking in the Senate to recoup taxpayer funds. Senator Mikulski’s statement, and the text of a letter to AIG Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Edward Liddy follow:

“AIG executives, in a monument to greed, just paid themselves $165 million in bonuses. I think it’s absolutely outrageous that the very people at AIG who got us into this mess in the first place are now giving themselves bonuses saying they need to be paid to get us out of it,” Senator Mikulski said. “We need drastic action.”

Washington, D.C.—Today, Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), a senior member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and member of the Joint Economic Committee, released the following statement in response to renewed reports about AIG’s decision to move forward with the payment of an installment of its $400 million retention payment plan to the Financial Products (FP) unit:

“For months, I have been calling on Edward Liddy to step down from his position leading AIG, and I loudly and clearly renew that call today. Mr. Liddy has repeatedly taken billions of hard-earned tax dollars from the American people—many of whom have lost their homes, their savings, and their jobs—and then slapped those people in the face with that very money. Mr. Liddy continues to display reckless and irresponsible behavior at the helm of this company, and we simply cannot afford to accept it any longer."