The White House rapid response team saves the day!
NEWS: (emp add)
... in an interview with Bloomberg Business Week, Obama made it sound like he doesn’t “begrudge” the multi-million dollar bonuses collected by JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon or Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein.
Asked directly whether bonus payouts of $17 million to Dimon and $9 million to Blankfein were acceptable, Obama replied by praising both men as “savvy businessmen.” He went on to say, “I, like most of the American people, don’t begrudge people success or wealth. That is part of the free- market system.”
Recognizing how damaging the comments could be, the White House press team launched a full-fledged pushback, saying that Bloomberg took the remarks out of context. They also posted an entry on the White House blog to clarify the remarks, saying Obama doesn’t agree with the big bonuses and has been saying the same thing dating back to the 2008 campaign.
These guys are really on the ball.
posted by Quiddity at 2/10/2010 05:40:00 PM
has anybody asked him yet if he thought it fair that gm workers were forced to break their contracts while wall street contracts were held up as sacrosanct?
He doesn't need to clarify anything. He was crystal clear. He doesn't begrudge his personal friends making millions of dollars in bonus payments. He only minds people who aren't his personal friends making that much.
His use of "begrudge" is quite offensive. Since when does the President of the United States have any business "begrudging" anyone their salary who doesn't work for him?
