WASHINGTON (ABC 4 News) - As Congress debates what to do with AIG executives who were paid bonuses after receiving government bailout money, President Obama and others are getting their own dose of scrutiny after the discovery of big campaign contributions by the insurance giant.
According to an
ABC News article, AIG employees doled out donations to candidates from both politcal parties, including presidential candidate Barack Obama, even after the bailout.
The question remains as to whether Obama, Senator Chris Dodd, Senator John McCain, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or others will give the money back.
According to ABC News, AIG executives gave more than $630,000 during the 2008 political cycle even as the company was falling apart.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks campaign finance reports, more than $120,000 of that money was donated after AIG received its first $85 billion in federal bailout funds in September. The company has since received a total of $170 billion in taxpayer cash to prevent its collapse.
AIG's donations included more than $23,000 to Obama's campaign.
According to ABC News, both Obama and Republican presidential candidate John McCain took in even more from AIG earlier 2008, with Obama collecting a total of $130,000 from AIG, and McCain accepting a total of $59,499.
Here is the list of politcal candidates who received donations from AIG during the 2008 presidential campaign and the amounts:
1. Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., $103,100
2. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., $101,332
3. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., $59,499
4. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., $35,965
5. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., $24,750
6. Former Gov. Mitt Romney, (R) Pres $20,850
7. Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., $19,975
8. Rep. John Larson, D-Conn, $19,750
9. Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., $18,500
10. Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) Pres $13,200
11. Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., $12,000
12. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., $11,000
----Information from: ABC News
