The buying of the government 2004 (Part 1)
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Also in this issue
- Growing up with your chip
- Merck execs' bailout loot
- One economic factor rising
- Hot peppers and 4-year tacos
- Your right to sue threatened
- Name that school!
- Growing up with your chip
- Merck execs' bailout loot
- One economic factor rising
- Hot peppers and 4-year tacos
- Your right to sue threatened
- Name that school!
The political media establishment is enraptured by John McCain. Mainline media sparklies, as well as the blatherers on the Fox channel, routinely buff up his image as a straight-talking, maverick foe of Washington's special interests. "The press loves McCain. We're his base," gushes MSNBC's Chris Matthews. But if the senator really is the feared reformer of business-as-usual government, why does his presidential campaign look like the back alley of K Street?
Merck execs' bailout loot
When drugmaker Merck recently withdrew its best-selling drug Vioxx (because it can cause heart attacks) company executives took their time disclosing this little problem to regulators, doctors, or patients, and now the company faces federal investigations and thousands of lawsuits.
Merck's stock price has plummeted by 40 percent, on top of a 30 percent slide caused by a lack of new products, all of which makes it a likely target for a takeover by another drug giant.
But Merck executives are quick on their feet when protecting their own personal interests. Their exec retirement plan says that if another company takes over Merck—or even just 20 percent of it—the top 230 executives can bail out with a golden parachute of three times their annual salaries, plus their expected bonuses, as well as stock payments. For example, CEO Raymond Gilmartin, who helped engineer this sweet deal, would get about $57 million to soften his landing.