While there has been a lot of outrage over taxpayer money being used to fund $165 million in bonuses paid out to American International Group (AIG) executives propagated by the media, Fox Business "Happy Hour" co-host Cody Willard suggested the bailout money is going to something far worse - terrorism, specifically al-Qaida.
On March 18, The Wall Street Journal reported that some of the money the U.S. government paid out to AIG might be benefiting hedge funds that bet on a failing housing market. According to the report, investment banks like Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) sold financial instruments to hedge funds betting defaults would increase.
"AIG bailout funds terrorism," Willard said. "This is what it's all about guys, it's the most politically well-connected. AIG aid is not going just to AIG shareholders, but more of the point is that it's going to Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank and these other banks, whose customers are yes - these giant hedge funds."
Willard alleged the link between terrorism and the AIG bailout is the money that went to Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank connected to hedge funds, which are invested in heavily by sovereign wealth funds.
"And who invests in the giant hedge funds? Sovereign wealth funds that also fund terrorism," Willard added. "So, if your rep voted for TARP, TALP, the stimulus package from last year or this year or any of these other corporate welfare bailouts - they're directly responsible for redistributing your money to al-Qaida."
According to a 2008 Wall Street Journal report, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Libya and Algeria have at least $25 billion invested in sovereign wealth in various places around the world.
The federal government propping up AIG started back in September 2008 with an initial $85 billion. Several other loans were made to AIG and by the end of 2008 the federal government lent a total of $150 billion to AIG. The taxpayers have an 80-percent stake in the insurance giant.
