Another Way to Recoup The Bonuses

Another Way to Recoup The Bonuses

Like everyone I’ve been following the AIG brouhaha, though with more than a bit of skepticism at the howls of outrage from the political class. (I have some more extended thoughts in this week’s issue, which should be up soon). Now that it seems that voiding the contracts is too difficult legally, congress is proposing to tax the bonuses at 90%Q. I kind of like the politics of this, if only because it will force the GOP to put their money where their mouths are: if they’re as outraged as they say, they’ll have no problem ignoring Grover Norquist and Rush Limbaugh and voting for the tax.

But Dean Baker also floats what might be a simpler, cleaner solution: just make what’s left of the AIG equity-holders pay for it.

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

Like everyone I’ve been following the AIG brouhaha, though with more than a bit of skepticism at the howls of outrage from the political class. (I have some more extended thoughts in this week’s issue, which should be up soon). Now that it seems that voiding the contracts is too difficult legally, congress is proposing to tax the bonuses at 90%Q. I kind of like the politics of this, if only because it will force the GOP to put their money where their mouths are: if they’re as outraged as they say, they’ll have no problem ignoring Grover Norquist and Rush Limbaugh and voting for the tax.

But Dean Baker also floats what might be a simpler, cleaner solution: just make what’s left of the AIG equity-holders pay for it.

We cannot back down

We now confront a second Trump presidency.

There’s not a moment to lose. We must harness our fears, our grief, and yes, our anger, to resist the dangerous policies Donald Trump will unleash on our country. We rededicate ourselves to our role as journalists and writers of principle and conscience.

Today, we also steel ourselves for the fight ahead. It will demand a fearless spirit, an informed mind, wise analysis, and humane resistance. We face the enactment of Project 2025, a far-right supreme court, political authoritarianism, increasing inequality and record homelessness, a looming climate crisis, and conflicts abroad. The Nation will expose and propose, nurture investigative reporting, and stand together as a community to keep hope and possibility alive. The Nation’s work will continue—as it has in good and not-so-good times—to develop alternative ideas and visions, to deepen our mission of truth-telling and deep reporting, and to further solidarity in a nation divided.

Armed with a remarkable 160 years of bold, independent journalism, our mandate today remains the same as when abolitionists first founded The Nation—to uphold the principles of democracy and freedom, serve as a beacon through the darkest days of resistance, and to envision and struggle for a brighter future.

The day is dark, the forces arrayed are tenacious, but as the late Nation editorial board member Toni Morrison wrote “No! This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

I urge you to stand with The Nation and donate today.

Onwards,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

Ad Policy
x