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Get a Clue, Washington: You Can't Do Everything

Effort to restructure exec pay smacks of arrogance

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 27, 2009 5:10 AM CDT

(Newser) – Clamping down on arrogant, risk-taking execs with an overconfident attempt to overhaul private sector pay structures shows that the arrogance has migrated to the Obama administration, writes David Brooks. The government is trying to micro-manage compensation packages at a wide variety of firms when pay regulation should be done, humbly, by addressing the imbalance in power between executives and shareholders, Brooks writes in the New York Times. "Over the past year, the bonfire of overconfidence has shifted to Washington."

Previous efforts at clamping down on CEO pay have backfired, and the government's proposals have already sent execs fleeing from top firms, Brooks warns. "These rules probably won’t even have a big effect on executive wealth. They’ll just drive compensation into back channels and risk-taking into unseen parts of the market." The government seems to be acting with "no awareness of the limits of its knowledge," Brooks writes. That goes for not only restructuring executive pay, but rebuilding GM, and overhauling health care, too, he concludes.

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President Barack Obama, accompanied by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, at a speaking engagement. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, file)

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They’re not leveling the playing field, as a humble government would do. They’re making it less level in complicated ways. - David Brooks

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 14 comments

cornelison

Oct 28, 2009 6:52 AM CDT

The President is doing too much? The President said in his campaign that he will work hard for the Americans. Well he's doing it. The GOP is either doing nothing or they're causing too many childish delays in legislation.

cornelison

Oct 28, 2009 6:39 AM CDT

Finally, the history of liberty is when Congress follows their job description in The Constitution and represent their constituents & not corporations.

cornelison

Oct 28, 2009 6:31 AM CDT

So far it seems that the history of resistance belongs to the GOP. They don't want the govt. to succeed and in return they want the country to fail. The history of liberty should be that health care becomes right. Liberty from the health insurance companies will increase only through govt.

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Politics • Money • US

executive compensation • Treasury Department • financial sector • David Brooks • Obama administration • financial crisis

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Get a Clue, Washington: You Can't Do Everything