Sen. Chris Dodd should be a shoe-in for reelection in 2010- he's a long serving Senator in the very blue state of Connecticut. Plus, he's Chariman of the Senate Banking Committee so he can raise tons of money.
However, he can't seem to make up his mind about whether or not he was involved in changing legislation so that it allowed AIG to pay out bonuses (that's a polite way of saying he lied about it).
From CNN: On Tuesday, Dodd denied that he had anything to do with adding the language.
"When I left the Senate, it was not in there. So when I wrote the language, there was no such language like that," he said then.
But, saying his previous comments had been misconstrued, Dodd said Wednesday that he added the exemption after getting pressure from the Treasury Department.
"I agreed reluctantly," Dodd said. "I was changing the amendment because others were insistent."This comes after allegation of shady real estate deals and a sweetheart loan from Countrywide.
From a home state paper: Dodd and other government officials deemed to be "Friends of Angelo" — a reference to former Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo — received discounted rates and fees, according to a former Countrywide employee. Dodd, who refinanced two mortgages with Countrywide in 2003, has said that he was unaware of any favorable treatment and that his loans were not out of line with mortgage rates available at the time.These days, being a "Friend of Angelo" is the equivalent of a NCAA basketball player being in a hot tub with someone named "William the Fixer"- it just don't look right.
Sure, the massive bailouts and executive bonuses are outrageous. But one of the lesser commented on problems with the company is they are making it hard for me to proudly wear my Ryan Giggs Manchester United jersey. You know, the one with the giant "AIG" sponsor logo emblazoned right on the front.
