We've just returned from our local AIG headquarters here in D.C., where around 130 people stood in the rain to take part in our Take Back the Economy day of action. Demonstrators held signs, sang songs, and presented AIG with a "reality check" worth billions of dollars from the American people.

Several people spoke, including SEIU President Andy Stern, who had this to say about AIG and other bailout recipients:

We own this company. And we didn't buy it to have them hand out million dollar bonuses. And I'll tell you this. It's not good enough to get just half the bonuses back. We want it all back, and we want it now.

We learned today that Citibank, who's gotten $45 billion of our money, is still going to spend $10 million to remodel their executive suite. Now I've been in the executive suite at Citigroup, and it is sweet. But remodeling the executive suite is like remodeling the Titanic before it sank. We don't need remodeling, we need our money back, we need home loans, we need jobs, we need fair pay for every American to get ahead

And here are some pictures of the rally:

To read the full transcript of Andy's speech, please read the extended entry.

Yesterday, as bailout bank CEOs entered the Rayburn House building to testify before Congresson how they used bailout funds, they were greeted by the playful chants and clever signs of SEIU members.

We've put together a short video of the demonstration - and managed to capture the thoughts of both the members participating and concerned citizens who were lined up to watch the hearing.

Take a look here:

And enjoy these photos of the event:

Reaction to Sam Stein's recent Huffington Post article on Bank of America's anti-Employee Free Choice conference call has been sweeping.

Wednesday night, on MSNBC show 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., host David Shuster reported on the call during his "Hypocrisy Watch" segment. Airing some of the tape from the call, Shuster makes the following comment:

"Bernie Marcus is entitled to his opinion on unions. Likewise, every American citizen is welcome to get involved in elections - elections matter. However, Bank of America and other financial institutions helped create the financial mess that our country faces, to begin with. For Bank of America to take taxpayer bailout money in order to 'improve the company's health' and then use that money to organize a conference call and get so involved in fighting in fighting workers who are trying to improve their own financial health...that's hypocrisy and that's wrong."

When taxpayers gave Bank of America a $25 billion bailout, the country's largest bank was supposed to use the funds to help jumpstart the economy.

What multiple news sources have found, unfortunately, is the opposite. Rather than using the loan to keep money flowing through the financial system to ensure that the bank continues lending to consumers, as was the original intent, Bank of America has instead misspent the money on foreign investments, executive salaries, and corporate jets.

As of yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reports that Bank of America wants "billions" more in bailout funds.

But a simple blog post can't cover the sheer amount of facts that you need to know about Bank of America. That's why today we, along with Brave New Films, produced a short web video giving an overview of Bank of America, the bailout, how it treats its employees, and just how much of a "bad actor" the company is.

Watch the video here:

Our multi-media nationwide effort to take on Bank of America's business practices and use of bailout money is part of a greater multi-industry effort by SEIU to identify corporate practices that have helped deepen the nation's financial crisis--and hold these corporations accountable for the damage they've done to our economy and the damage they continue to do.

Here's what CNN Money wrote about our campaign:

Treasury already has provided Bank of America with $25 billion in capital through its controversial $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program. Congress has released half of the funding for that program.
"It is clear so far that the money we've spent has not changed anyone's business model," said Andy Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union."Why are we going to give them more bailout money if they're going to keep making the same mistakes?"

Someone has to say that enough is enough. Bank of America needs to either use its bailout to help the economy and its workers, or give back the bailout. We're counting on you to stand up and take action.

What can Bank of America do? We've created a list of common sense ideas that will help hundreds of thousands of working people get by in these tough times.

In addition to launching this online campaign, activists and SEIU members descended on Bank of America headquarters in Los Angeles, Charlotte, New York City, and Boston to present our demands of the campaign:

1. Provide health care for its 247,000 workers using the money it spent last year on executive salaries and bonuses. By providing its workers with inadequate health coverage, BofA is able to keep down its payroll costs at taxpayers' expense.
2. Keep over 12,000 troubled borrowers in their homes with executive bonus money
3. End the practice of unilaterally changing credit cardholder agreements.
4. Sign new leases with renters who live in buildings that are being foreclosed upon

Learn more about Bank of America's practices and this campaign at www.seiu.org/bankofamerica. Read our complete report, "Bank of America: A Billionaire's Boondoggle," here.

In October, the federal government gave Bank of America and Merrill Lynch a combined $25 billion in bailout funds. According to the Wall Street Journal, the move was designed "to keep money flowing through the financial system, ensuring that banks continue lending to companies, consumers and each other." (1) Unfortunately for the taxpayers footing the bill, Bank of America appears to have had another agenda.

The other day, CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reported the following:

"Once the bill became law on October 3, Henry Paulson's Treasury Department moved quickly on an entirely different front: Give bailout money to select banks to help them buy competitors."

According to the report, Paulson did not discuss this strategy in advance in his conversations with important members of Congress.

The report goes on to note that Bank of America "received $15 billion dollars and bought Merrill Lynch, which got $10 billion even as it was up for sale."

Watch the video here:

As we note in our own report, even though Bank of America claimed that it did not use bailout funds to invest in healthy banks, just three weeks after receiving the bailout money, BofA invested $7 billion of it in China Construction Bank Corp. - a foreign bank with no presence in the U.S.

Morningstar Inc. analyst Jaime Peters noted at the time, "This is falling closely on the heels of their receiving [bailout] money, which was intended to spur lending in the U.S. or have bigger, stronger banks buy the failing banks...But neither of these things is happening." (2)

The CBS News article mentioned above also noted that, this week, "congressional leaders...said no further bailout money will be given to Treasury without much stricter conditions."

Read more at www.seiu.org/bankofamerica

Sources:
1) Deborah Solomon, Damian Paletta, Jon Hilsenrath, and Aaron Lucchetti, "U.S. to Buy Stakes in Nation's Largest Banks," Wall Street Journal, 14 Oct 2008.
2) Luo Jun and David Mildenberg, "Bank of America to Pay $7 Billion to Double CCB Stake," Bloomberg, 18 Nov 2008; and "China Construction Bank wins UK regulatory approval to open London unit," Thomson Financial News, 11 Dec 2008.

2-million member union calls for Wall Street bailout to include $350 billion injection to address urgent needs of workers

WASHINGTON, DC -  With Washington moving toward a bailout of Wall Street banks, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) called for action on legislation that will launch a new era of prosperity and address the real economic concerns of America's working families. SEIU leaders representing the union's two million members overwhelmingly approved a resolution calling for legislation to address the priorities of working people.

"The era of corporate cronyism and worship of the market is over--we need a new economic model that puts the government on the side of the people," said Andy Stern, SEIU International President. "It's time to take a deep breath and have a full discussion about how we solve our problems now while creating an investment strategy to revive the American economy."

The resolution comes as Capitol Hill lawmakers and regulators consider the final details of a $700 billion bailout package that fails to address the inadequate oversight, lack of transparency, and excessive risk-taking practices of private equity firms, hedge funds, and other unregulated institutions that are now culminating in what is globally perceived as the most severe economic crisis since the Great Depression. In particular, the SEIU resolution calls for dedicated investment in programs that would improve the lives of tens of millions of Americans, including:

1. Relief for struggling homeowners. Estimated cost: $0.
2. A national health care plan. Estimated cost: $130 billion over two years.
3. A plan for energy independence and green job creation. Estimated cost: $20 billion over two years.
4. Retirement security. Estimated cost: Negligible
5. Improved infrastructure. Estimated cost: $22 billion over two years.
6. Tax reforms to correct a system that currently favors CEOs and business while contributing to a growing income divide. Estimated cost: $80 billion.
7. Reforms that ensure workers have real freedom to choose a voice at work. Estimated cost: $0.
8. Affordable education. Estimated cost: $100 billion over two years.