AIG Executives Supercede US Airways Hero Pilot
Government Actions Favor Failed Bankers over Captain Sullenberger
Mar 22, 2009
Is it a slap in the face of the Hero on the Hudson, when Congress and the Obama administration argue in favor of maintaining contracts for disgraced AIG superiors?
There is a sad correlation between a genuine American hero, US Airways Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and the overzealous, greedy, incompetent executives at AIG. There is governmental outrage, now that voters have shown disgust; however, neither congress nor the administration has been completely forthcoming about their role with respect to Sully and AIG.
Banking & Aviation Deregulation
- Sully – According to the US Government’s Centennial of Flight Commission’s report on Deregulation and Its Consequences, the 1978 Deregulation Act’s main purpose was to remove “…governmental control ….[and] CAB regulatory authority...” allowing market forces to take over.
- AIG – Reporter David Leonhardt, of the New York Times, wrote on September 26th 2008, "In 1999…the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, a bank deregulation bill, swept away…Glass-Steagall.” Called the Financial Services Modernization Act, it removed “…restrictions on the integration of banking, insurance and stock trading…” according to columnist Martin McLaughlin in an 11/1/99 WS article.
- Sully – Centennial argues, “Unfortunately for the airline industry…deregulation began to have serious negative consequences….The climate in the post-deregulation era was extremely unstable…”
- AIG – According to Leonhardt, Senator Byron Dorgan (a dissenter of the 1999 bill) said, ‘I think we will look back in 10 years’ time and say we should not have done this….’ Today “…Dorgan looks prescient. Gramm-Leach-Bliley “…is often cited as a cause… [of] the current financial crisis....”
- Sully – The Institutional Risk Analyst of Lord Whalen LLC wrote on March 22nd 2004, “Is United Airlines Too Big To Fail?” He cites a New York Times article that says, “Former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill once told a colleague that it would be better to make grants to the airlines rather than go through the process of documenting…loans….” He continues, “US Air [Sully’s company], America West [now US Airways]…are among the air carriers that received guarantees.” The US Airways guarantee was $900 million, American West $380 million, or a $1.28 billion taxpayer bailout.*
- AIG – Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Donald Kohn argued on 3/5/09, “the risks to policy holders and the broad economy are too great for the government not to prevent insurance company American International Group Inc from failing.” On 9/16/08 Kelsey Hubbard of the Wall Street Journal wrote about the eventual $173 billion bailout, “AIG Too Big to Fail."
- Sully – and AIG had economic cheerleaders that professed industries would police themselves. William Dunk Partners, Inc., a management consulting firm and investor relations corporation, wrote on September 26th, 2006, The Failure of Deregulation: Dr. Alfred Kahn “…poked into the marketplace just long enough to create confusion and dysfunction….Deregulation…an idea that flows out of free market theory, has not worked [in] the United States….We have simply substituted unregulated, unbridled market-monopolies for regulated monopolies….”
- AIG – Dr. Alan Greenspan, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, told CBS News correspondent Leslie Stall on 60 Minutes, “…I was aware the practices were going on, I had no notion how significant they were…I didn’t really get it…” E. Ray Canterbery says in his book Alan Greenspan: The Oracle Behind the Curtain, “Greenspan’s policies have always been directed at the protection of the greatest wealth holders….”
- Sully – Sullenberger's contract was unilaterally scrapped and his retirementabrogated by the Federal Government. The Huffington Post’s Joan Lovvy reported on 2/24/09, “US Airways pilot…Sullenberger [told Congress] his pay has been cut 40%...and his pension has been terminated.”
- AIG – Sen. Christopher Dodd, Secretary Timothy Geithner and Chairman Ben Bernanke have all stated what Economic Council Chairman Larry Summers told ABC reporter George Stephanopoulos on March 15th 2009. Taxpayers “…would risk a lawsuit if it scrapped the [executive’s] contracts….We are a country of law. There are contracts. The government cannot just abrogate contracts,” touted Summers.
* Airline News on May 30th 2006.
The copyright of the article AIG Executives Supercede US Airways Hero Pilot in American Affairs is owned by Frank W. Hardy. Permission to republish AIG Executives Supercede US Airways Hero Pilot in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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