Lies: Fox News, Limbaugh and other right-wing attack dogs said Dodd inserted an amendment that undo bonus limit. Other right-wing hacks said Dodd created a "loophole."
Fox News:
Quote:
(The highlighted part is pure fiction)
While the Senate was constructing the $787 billion stimulus last month, Dodd added an executive-compensation restriction to the bill. The provision, now called “the Dodd Amendment” by the Obama Administration provides an “exception for contractually obligated bonuses agreed on before Feb. 11, 2009” -- which exempts the very AIG bonuses Dodd and others are now seeking to tax.
Amid AIG Furor, Dodd Tries to Undo Bonus Protections in the 'Dodd Amendment' Rules - FOXBusiness.com
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Truth: Dodd did not create said loophole. His original restriction is very straight forward and contains no loophole. Read the WSJ excerpt below.
From the WSJ on Feb 14, 2009.
Quote:
The most stringent pay restriction bars any company receiving funds from paying top earners bonuses equal to more than one-third of their total annual compensation. That could severely crimp pay packages at big banks, where top officials commonly get relatively modest salaries but often huge bonuses.
As word spread Friday about the new and retroactive limit -- inserted by Democratic Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut...
Bankers Face Strict New Pay Cap - WSJ.com
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What we know so far: Dodd tried to put a cap on bonuses. The restriction was eventually removed with Dodd's knowledge. A less stringent restriction was inserted into the bill instead.
What we don't know: who wanted to remove the restriction and why Dodd agreed with the move.
Now, one can say that Dodd gave up too easily. But to say that he purposely put in a loophole is simply a lie.
I'm not defending Dodd, but there is simply not enough info at this point to know what really happened.
For more info:
http://mediamatters.org/items/200903170026