Андрей,
You're missing the point. "constitution menjalas uzhe stolko raz".
To write a law that is unconstitutional is NOT the same as to actually change the Constitution. If Congress wants to change the Constituion - it should in fact initiate a very well defined process to do so.
And we are not talking here about a particular case - there are important constitutional principles at stake here. And simply trivializing what has taken place in Congress and saying "don't worry, be happy" is very misguided.
"nobody is going to take your money". I wish I had your confidence. But I don't.
"The government big enough to give you anything you want is the government big enough to take away everything you have" -- Gerald Ford, 1975.

"The government big enough to give you anything you want is the government big enough to take away everything you have" -- Gerald Ford, 1975.
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Зоя
This is what SHOULD be done, which will never happen.
1. Congress appoints an independent panel (or a special prossecutor) to investigate how, when and by whom a special provision was written into the AIG takeover agreement last fall. My bet is that Chris Dodd would on the top of that list.
2. Congress, if so desires, writes a law to affect any FUTURE (not past) bonuses for companies that received taxpayer's $$.
3. Relatively speaking $165M is a drop in a bucket compared with billions that have went into sinkholes called AIG, CITI, BOA and others. How about revieing all of those agreements?
And BTW, people are outraged at $165M? Why aren't they outraged that at least $58B of our money went over to foreign banks, such as Barclay's and UBS to cover credit default swaps issued by AIG???

And you know why this will never happen? Because this investigation will undoubtedly reveal that the people sitting on the Banking and Financial Services Committees (both republicans and democrats) - are in fact responsible for this debacle. And they certainly do not deserve to sit in judgement of others. More appropriatly, it should be them who should be sitting in the other, opposite chairs and answering questions.

Natan,

i agree, but that's is normal. there are not that many people that can be impartial and have no personal interests. it is unwise of us to think otherwise.

That's part of the problem, Зоя. We, for the sake of this country and our children, should not allow ourselves to think that this is "normal". It is NOT normal. When people on Wall street rob you blind and people in Congress scream bloody murder and then turn around and rob you many times over - it is not "normal"
THROW THE BUMS OUT !!!!!

I am sorry, if I come across angry. I am not angry at you. But I am mad as hell at these goniffs.

Natan - agree... playing devil's advocate for a minute, and how many people do we have that are going to apply for those jobs? you? me? unlikely.....

I agree with you. Integrity, honesty, decency, responsibility is in short supply in our government these days. Maybe what we need is term limits for Congress. For example, how can anyone justify someone like Robert Byrd (D-WV) in the Senate? The guy is 94 years old. There are plenty of other examples. There should be at least a mandatory retirement age, around 75 - most corporations have it for their top management. But Congress wants to live by different rules.
I am ashamed to say, but our Senate reminds me of the Soviet Politbureau. 8oI 8oI 8oI 8oI

Natan - the principals upon this country was built are still here. Greed is universal.