The Republican Party is supposed to be looking out for the interests of investors. But after Bush-appointed SEC Chairman Christopher Cox supported a new rule that insulates entrenched management from dissident shareholders, we may have to look elsewhere.
John Edwards seems like an unlikely friend of the small investor, but his editorial in today's (subscription required) Wall Street Journal suggests otherwise:
...Our companies should be run for the benefit of workers and shareholders as well as insiders. Today, too many companies in America are putting far too much of their earnings into excessive CEO and executive pay, when this money could be going to increased worker salaries, better benefits and investments in plants and equipment.
As president, I will immediately cap untaxed deferred compensation for executives. I will also give shareholders new rights and responsibilities so that they can call shareholder meetings, remove directors who aren't acting responsibly, and have a say on executive pay.
Regardless of how you feel about putting a cap on untaxed, deferred compensation -- I myself wonder whether that would really do anything to curb excessive pay, and think it might actually exacerbate the problem -- it's nice to see a candidate who wants to talk about what many of us see as one of the greatest threats to capitalism: lack of accountability for corporate executives and directors.
Edwards may not be the right guy to fix the problem, but this is definitely an issue that deserves a lot more discussion.
Nuclear power is on the comeback trail
Apple backs AT&T in continuing spat with Verizon
Closing Bell: The recession is still over, still... do you feel it?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-02-2008 @ 5:18PM
OINKJOHNSON2 said...
Excessive executive pay, whether salary, bonus determined by "performance" against some arbitrary target that a chimp could meet, or deferred, is definitely a problem.
I am not sure whether a president (of the country) could do much about it, though, without running afoul of the law, if not the Constitution.
Shareholders can opt out, of course, as many have with Comcast, for example, whose Board has just signed a new contract with its almost 90 year old Founder Chairman, whose compensation will continue (to his family) after his death!
Greed will be the undoing of capitalism. Heaven help the USA.
1-02-2008 @ 5:24PM
dale long said...
first i would like to ask....why must one sign in to make a comment? only reason i can think of is so they can fill my mail box with garbage....so please do not send me any email or advertising....i dont want it........now my comments....i agree with john edwards ceo's and corporate directors need to be held accountable....their pay and other compensations are obscene......now another comment/question... who is john edwards?....john edwards is a bigger theif than the ones he is calling theif.....john edwards and his brotherhood of trial lawyer thieves steal from all the rest of us...they steal from our health care.....they steal from our 401k's and individual retirement accounts as well as steal from others who invest....john edwards and the rest of the organized crime family of trial lawyers use our courts to steal from the rest of us....i wonder, does john edwards have a plan to stop the trail lawyers from using our courts to steal from the rest of us?...john edwards has personnally stole over 110 million dollars filing phoney lawsuits.....his profession of thieving lawyers has stole equally to those greedy ceo's and the boards who set thier salary....happy new year everyone....ldl