FOX "Interview With Senator Charles Grassley" - Transcript

Interview

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SEN. GRASSLEY: The first thing that would make me feel a little bit better towards them, if they had followed the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I'm sorry, and then either do one or two things, resign or go commit suicide.

MR. SCOTT: Tough talk, but the Senator later explained what he meant; saying AIG executives should have expressed more remorse over the near-collapse of their company. Now, Senator Grassley is calling on AIG's CEO to release the names of the executives who took the bonuses and he wants an inquiry into the Treasury Department's role in specifically allowing those payments.

Senator Grassley, the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, he joins us now live from Capitol Hill.

If you get those names, Senator, what will you do with them?

SEN. GRASSLEY: Well, I think we need to know who they are and if the administration is not successful going after it, use the Government Accountability Office, use the resources of Congress. But I think we need to know who is benefiting from these at a time that a company is on the brink of disaster or, I guess, most people would say it's already a case of disaster. We just need to know who and we particularly need to know retention bonuses that went to nine people that are no longer retained by the company.

So you know, the justification for it -- it's almost like there's a license to be irresponsible just because you're sucking on the taxpayer.

MR. SCOTT: AIG's chief executive, Edward Liddy, you heard him yesterday say that he's asked to those people who received bonuses to give at least half of the money back. Is that enough?

SEN. GRASSLEY: Well, it isn't enough for Senator Baucus and me because if you would look at our legislation that we put in 48 hours ago, we suggest or we require a 35 percent tax from the corporation, a 35 percent tax from the individual and then with other taxes, I know, I think, we'll get back most of our money and we feel that it was an ill-gotten gain and, particularly, when the company is on the brink, particularly when they are getting money from the taxpayers.

MR. SCOTT: You've heard the criticism, though, I mean, a lot of legal experts say that amounts to a bill of attainder. It's a bill targeting a specific group and that it's illegal, this kind of thing could be tied up in the courts for years.

SEN. GRASSLEY: Well, you know what? I'm a farmer and not a lawyer. I'm going to have to leave that up to the judicial branch of government, but I think I know enough about the law that when you're in bankruptcy, you know, contracts can be a bridge. If there's fraud involved there can be abridgement. You know, I don't know how that applies here because there might be 167 different cases for 167 different people. But we need to do what we can to make sure that a company that's living off the taxpayers don't do things outrageous as this particular act was.

MR. SCOTT: It does seem and I know you don't know who got these bonuses and that's part of what you're trying to figure out, but it does seem that a good many of these executives probably aren't even American citizens, or at least are living overseas right now.

Do you think you have the ability to touch those assets?

SEN. GRASSLEY: No. We'll have to go after the corporate money and at a higher rate in those particular instances.

MR. SCOTT: All right. So there are a couple of proposals, the House and the Senate both trying to go after the assets. Do you think that you're going to be able to, I mean, you're both of the same mind, you'll be able to come up with a system that would, in fact, return that bonus to the U.S. Treasury?

SEN. GRASSLEY: You know, originally, Chairman Rangel was publicly stating that he didn't agree with Grassley and Baucus and our approach of taxing, but he obviously has changed his mind now. It's my understanding the House is going to pass a bill today, and if they do pass a bill today, it may be that Senator Baucus and I will take a look at that and say that does roughly the same thing we want to do, and if it does, we may just go ahead with the House bill. If it doesn't, then we'll have to pass a separate bill in conference, but I think we can get the job done.

MR. SCOTT: All right. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, Republican, thank you.

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