Bailed-out Bank of America spent $10 million on Super Bowl party.
Bailed-out Bank of America spent $10 million on Super Bowl party.
Just weeks ago, the federal government extended $20 billion to Bank of America to keep it afloat, bringing its total in federal bailout dollars received to $45 billion. ABC News reports, however, that the bank managed to scrounge up millions of dollars to be an NFL sponsor and for “a five day carnival-like” Super Bowl party just outside the stadium:
The event — known as the NFL Experience — was 850,000 square feet of sports games and interactive entertainment attractions for football fans and was blanketed in Bank of America logos and marketing calls to sign up for football-themed banking products. [...]
The bank refused to tell ABC News how much it is spending as an NFL corporate sponsor, but insiders have put the figure at close to $10 million. The NFL Experience was on top of that and was inked last summer, according to the bank.
The NFL said it was a “multi-million dollar” event and that it was also spending money to put on the event. A Super Bowl insider said the tents alone cost over $800,000.
The Huffington Post notes that this is the latest in a series of bailed-out banks that continue to spend lavishly on sports sponsorships.
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But, in today’s economy, you have to spend money to lose money to get Government money, everyone knows that… how will they receive the bailouts if they act in a fiscally responsible manner?
Come on… those bonuses don’t distribute themselves!
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:36 pmHa Ha,
Other People’s Money
Lots and Lots of Other People’s Money.
There’s absolutely no real oversite because the GOP and DEMs both exist to serve the same masters. After 8 years of robbing the people blind, they just can’t help themselves.
The joke is on us and our children, grand children, great grand children… Pick out your cardboard box while they’re still available.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:38 pmWhere the hell is MY invitation?
After all, it WAS MY money!
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:41 pmI wanna party too!
All these CEO’s are gonna be questioned before Congress within the next few weeks . .
The Bush admin. gave the money with no restrictions but it’s perfectly legal for Congress NOW to demand that the money be returned, including all that BONUS money!!
GIVE THE MONEY BACK . .
Let these CEO’s take Amtrak and watch the Superbowl on TV like we all do!!
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:46 pmDidn’t Puppy Bowl V have only one sponsor, Bissell? The super bowl sure could learn a thing or two.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:46 pmWhat are you, a Socialist?
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:48 pmMaybe they could throw a few hundred thousand my way? I could use a party.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:48 pmI’m guessing Joe Scarborough is much more comfortable that all that money went to BofA so they could throw a lavish Super Bowl party, rather than to a bunch of poor people.
After all, Super Bowl parties employ people. For a little while.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:49 pmSee, here’s why I keep harping on why the government should buy voting stock and appoint someone to the Boards of Directors instead of buying non-voting stock or just throwing money at them.
No matter what, we’ve created the expectation that how they do business is our business.
Maybe these were well-spent advertising dollars and BoA will get lots of new business from this, maybe not. The projected return on this is buried somewhere in their marketing department, and not available to the public.
This kind of pseudo-socialism, where we just give them a bunch of money but don’t have any say in (or knowledge of) their specific business practices just doesn’t work. It would have been better to (temporarily) nationalize them than to go this route. Now we’re all pissed off whenever we see them making expenditures that seem frivolous, even though we don’t have the information to judge whether they’re frivolous or not.
It’s the same thing with the Wall Street bonuses. Maybe some companies made some money; maybe some brokers in companies made some money for their clients. In any case, brokers work largely on a bonus structure rather than salary, like salesmen. We weren’t told what the breakdown was between pay and performance, just the total amount paid out by the financial industry. If it weren’t for the fact that we’re propping these people up every time they screw up, we wouldn’t have to give a crap if some of them are screwing up.
Had we bought voting stock with the bailout money, we’d have a mechanism through which to complain. As it is, there’s no point. We handed them cash, they blew it on a party, that was stupid of us.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:50 pmshoeless says;
What say you, comrade?
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:53 pmBoA originally said ‘we don’t need the money, we’re doing OK.’
About that time,a dim light went on in a CEO’s head, ‘What the Hell am I saying? This would be FREE money!’
Now they want to mosey up to the feedbag again, after blowing $10M on a Super Bowl party.
If Janet Jackson’s bare breast was obscene, what the Hell is this?
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:53 pmJoe Scarborogh was seen Rushing with Limbaugh under the big tent.
It was not NFL Rushing.!
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:55 pmWhat was that TV idiot babbling about earlier today? Something about not wanting to spend money on people who don’t pay taxes?
I bet anything his outrage doesn’t reach the profligate spending of corporate fat cats like BoA who, coincidentally, don’t pay as much taxes as they should.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:55 pmZimzone; what was that saying?
I recognize obscenity when I see it?
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:56 pmThey signed this deal long before the bailout. They probably would have had to pay penalties for dropping the agreement.
Plus, they still have to keep their existing business and try to bring in new customers. You can’t do that unless you get your name out.
I can see people being outraged about the executive bonuses (those were near criminal), but we can’t expect companies that got bailout money to stop advertising. If we start putting those kinds of restrictions on them, we’ll probably have to bail them out several more times because they won’t bring in new customers and grow their business.
I don’t really have a problem with this $10 million being spent to sponsor Super Bowl events.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:59 pmClearly, then, they can afford to make restitution.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:00 pmI’m no Socialist. I understand that my tax money belongs the the multinational bankers to use as they see fit. Unlike you Socialists, I don’t whine just because my taxes go to pay for parties and bonuses to my betters. You Socialists would be much happier if you would just shut up and get back to work, so you can pay your taxes.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:04 pmEvery now and then someone steps in to say the Democrats and Republican serve the same master. This is, of course, a favorite meme around the internet. But Republican election fraud suggests otherwise.
It is unlikely that any “secret masters” would allow their controlled parties to mess things up with election theft and stealing elections from one another.
Republican election fraud is consistent with two parties duking it out, but inconsistent with two parties acting as puppets for a secret elite.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:05 pmWindsor,
The State of Kentucky had not asked for federal assistance until today. The federal help will now be on the way.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:14 pmdoes anyone else wish they’d reach around and at least tweak your tit during the royal fcuking they’re giving us?
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:15 pmwindsock,
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:16 pmtell you what, you provide a link of the number of deaths due to winter weathre this year and i’ll provide statistics of those who died of neglect along the gulf coast. whaddya say? feelin’ lucky, beyotch?
shoeless says;
My money to my betters? To use as they see fit?
Just remember, this is how they got Czar Nicholas. Also, Marie Antoinette lost her head-literally.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:17 pmI have a better question. Why did the Republicans deregulate the electric industry, allowing the power corporations allow the electrical grid to fall into disrepair, so that a winter storm can knock out the power for millions of people?
Power Outage Traced To Dim Bulb In White House
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:20 pmAmericans don’t see a problem with that. Right now Law Makers are getting ready to give another bailout to banks and then they can have another party off the taxpayers dime. Just don’t ask for a loan from Bank of America. They don’t give out loans they only get taxpayers money to give big bonueses and parties. Greed is Good as the GOP would say and they will continue their mission as Bush/Cheney ordered.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:22 pmWindsore: perhaps you should peddle your straw man elsewhere — for example, why not try calling the office of Sen. McConnell (R-KY), to ask him to stop being such an obstructionist puke in the Senate and help the President get the stimulus bill passed so that the good Senator’s constituents in Ken-by-god-tucky can get back on their feet (and on their heat)?
Oh that’s right — you don’t have time for that. You’re too busy searching reich wing websites for the latest talking points so you can play your post-and-run game on TP…
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:25 pmBozo, as much as I appreciate your manhandling of the troll, I can’t help but think that “windsock” is a poor tag for the creature.
See, a windsock aligns itself with whatever direction the wind blows.
Our friend windsore will always be stiffly extended in whatever direction opposes goodness and justice. The winds of public opinion have no impact on windsore, he just wants to erect his opposition to President Obama no matter where he goes.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:27 pmi feel so ashamed, it’s been duly noted, ralph. would it be ok if i called “beyotch” instead?
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:28 pmwindsor Says:
Mean while, back at the White House…
Did you refuse to watch the Super Bowl over concern for the power outage? I didn’t. Does that make you a bad person? Me? I don’t know how to break this to you, but Obama doesn’t have super powers. He can’t just turn off the TV, put on a cape and fly down there to restore the power personally.
CNN says there have been a total of sixteen deaths. The National Guard is already going door to door, and evacuation has been available the whole time. We’ll judge the response by the overall government effort and results, as we did for Katrina.
You know, if we were really concerned about this, it might be a good idea to elect someone for President who campaigns on the idea of having a single national electricity grid, instead of the decaying patchwork system we have now. Perhaps somebody like that Barack Obama fellow…
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:31 pmYou know, if we were really concerned about this, it might be a good idea to elect someone for President who campaigns on the idea of having a single national electricity grid, instead of the decaying patchwork system we have now. Perhaps somebody like that Barack Obama fellow…
And how about we also decentralize power-production? So that houses generated at least some of their own power? Seems like someone was pushing for wind and solar options that would do just that without the Carbon Monoxide emmisions that are killing all those people in Kentucky… who was it? Oh yeah, the Obama guy again!
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:36 pmWasn’t he a Russian Commie? If our tax money goes to the bankers, the Socialists, like your Czar Nicholas, can’t get it.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:37 pmwindsor Says:
Meanwhile more SuperStupid by the epitome of the brainwashed braindead zombie contingent. Take a hike moron. You are just too stupid to put up with.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:38 pm$800k for tents? Will they at least now donate those tents for the upcoming tent cities that will be popping up all over the country?
But I guess they really needed to funnel money into advertising because nobody’s ever heard of Bank of America.
PEACE
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:38 pmThat, I think, would be most appropriate, Bozo.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:39 pmPerry Logan, don’t confuse the practice of Democracy with the folks that pay for it. We get to vote, they get access, legislation, and actually become part of the government with each turn of the cycle. We’re not part of the “revolving door”, but defense contractors, oil men, and CEO/CFO types are.
Enjoy your purple finger, but don’t think for a second either of us is being represented in D.C. There’s no “secret master”. It’s all in the open. I don’t know why you press the conspiracy button, just use the Google or the “Easy Button” if you have one of those.
Have no doubt that the elite, secret or otherwise, have their differences. But most would throw that duck with them golden eggs in the oven in a heart beat if it meant they would benefit financially in the short term, and screw the other guy. Unfortunately now, we’re all that other guy.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:41 pmOnly one comment is appropriate for this subject:
My friends, THAT is the beauty of the free market!
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:43 pmI think you mean the free money market.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:48 pmWait, wait, wait. Those states are all run by Republicans. You people who blamed Louisiana for not being prepared for a catastrophe of epic proportions. And your leaders didn’t prepare for “winter” in January. And as I recall they voted against the bill to update the electrical grid.
Mayors, governors, senators and reps all Republican spread out across three red states not all in one small area. Maybe if all those trailer park bogus disability recipients would work instead of collecting food stamps there would be somebody to fix the power lines.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:49 pmOK, but was this expenditure an honest investment in advertising, or a boondoggle for their top brass masquerading as advertising? I’m sure this $10 million “sponsorship” came with a few tickets for really good seats.
Corporate sponsorships can sometimes be a good investment. I worked for a large company once, and part of their advertising budget went to sponsoring a NASCAR car. This company’s top executives weren’t exactly NASCAR fans (they were northerners, and most would prefer to go to a hockey game), but they appreciated the visibility of the sport, and they wanted the demographic it attracted. They felt they got their money’s worth.
It’s possible that BofA may see a Super Bowl sponsorship as a genuine investment (hey, it could happen), for the same reason — desirable demographic and high visibility. Perhaps we should be asking BofA what they’re getting for their $10 million — or what they would be losing if they didn’t go the sponsorship route.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:50 pmWasn’t BOA just investing money to defeat labor unions too. Well at least this party is less harmful to working people than that little venture.
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:53 pmThe 300 MILLION was NOT taxpayer money, was it??
PRIVATE MONEY . .
The Bush Crime Family and their Carlyle Group could have privately financed the bank bailout from their OIL revenues . .
Sorry, that much too much sense!!
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:13 pmYou Socialist you!
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:14 pmshoeless says;
Czar Nicholas was a socialist?
LMFAO!
Perhaps you should change your name to clueless.
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:19 pmSend them an invoice.
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:23 pmMartial law!!
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:23 pmRethuglikkkans are blaming the slow recovery from the ice storm on Obama — he created this problem in 11 days?? Or was the problem caused by Bush&Co neglecting infrastructure for 8 years? Now there aren’t enough men or equipment to restore power — Obama may be smart and able, but he ain’t no magician!
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:28 pmGaaarrrr!!!!
Everything these CEO’s need to learn could’ve been taught by Pink Floyd:
New Car
Caviar
Four Star
Day Dream
Think I’ll buy a
Football Team
I’m in the
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:30 pmHigh Fidelity
First Class
Travelling Section
I think I need
A Lear Jet
BTW, isn’t McConnell (chinless, obstructionist, repugniscum, married to Elaine Chao, who legislated against Labor) the Senator from KY — and minority leader as well?
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:35 pmWhy do Repugniscum hate Americans?
John Kerry Says
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:07 pm
..and Brotha Obama spent $300 million on just his inaugration alone!! If he TRULY cared about teh economay he would have just been sworn in in his office and GIVEN the 300 mil to us!!
________________________________________________________
Link, please, to a credible site stating the $300 million figure. Most of the sources I can find claim the price tag as about half of that.
But no matter. The lion’s share of the cost is for security (funds to pay for the balls and parties, the luncheon, the inaugural parade, etc. comes from money raised by the Inaugural Committee). And by spending the money on security guards, it’s being pumped back into the economy by people working for it. A very Obama thing to do, actually.
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:39 pmcaption…
“Whoah! I get a years supply of beer nuts just for opening a new account? Sign me up man!”"
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:39 pmFirst of all, the insatiable American appetite for all things NFL would suggest quite strongly that having a fun interactive presence at the Super Bowl would be a great way to build goodwill with customers and gain new customers.
Second of all, an event like this would be booked long in advance, so to suggest they should have pulled the plug and lose (waste) millions and get nothing rather than forge ahead and reap the benefits is really, really stupid.
What a petty and stupid non-story.
Ali Frick needs to get a clue about marketing and advertising before posting garbage like this.
Next.
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:39 pmplargo Says:
First of all, the insatiable American appetite for all things NFL
Mmmmmm….leftover nachoes!
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:43 pmAlka-Seltzers stock shot up today…..
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:50 pmJK STUFF your racist ignorance where the sun never shines
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:14 pmwindsor Says:
You are an ignorant racist piece of garbage. Why do you humiliate yourself so. We already know how astonishingly STUPID you are
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:15 pmKeltoi at Night Says
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:43 pm
plargo Says:
First of all, the insatiable American appetite for all things NFL
Mmmmmm….leftover nachoes!
________________________________________________________
LEFTOVER nachos? You’ve actually seen nachos left over? I’ve only had nachos fresh, since right after they’re made, everybody descends on them like sharks at feeding time.
Can’t say the same for that nut-covered cheese log, though…
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:25 pmmisshusseinmolly Says:
Or those wierd fruitcakes. I have a theory that no fruitcake has actually been made since 1943. They just keep getting recycled as gifts rewrapped and sent to someone else.
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:28 pmImagine how many teenagers got drunk late last night; wandering through the living room debris, slugging the dregs of all those beer bottles….
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:42 pmGood idea. What would you do with your one dollar?
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:47 pmHey John Kerry. I got monkfish. Do you like monkfish?
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:49 pmit’s ok when people in suits use it to party.
it’s not ok when katrina victims buy beer though.
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:51 pmFirst of all, the insatiable American appetite for all things NFL would suggest quite strongly that having a fun interactive presence at the Super Bowl would be a great way to build goodwill with customers and gain new customers.
—
What are you talking about. The super bowl is only slightly less boring than that baseball thing.
When it was over was someone declared “world champions”?
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:52 pmSo are the domestic violence stats in yet?
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:53 pmPut these a$$wipes in jail for misappropriation of funds.
February 2nd, 2009 at 7:51 pmShayne Says:
And as I recall they voted against the bill to update the electrical grid.
Really? Yeah, I could see that.
I used to live in a “red” area where every fall they voted against a gas tax for road repairs, and every spring they ended up paying more to get their shocks replaced because of all the potholes.
Oh well, I don’t mind helping save the wingnuts from the consequences of their own stupidity. That’s what makes me morally superior to them, after all.
.
John Kerry Says:
..and Brotha Obama spent $300 million on just his inaugration alone!!
A new record! The price tag for Obama’s inauguration has been listed as follows: $140m (as cited by the AP), $150m (as cited by other news posts referencing the AP’s article), $160m, $170m, $200m (by TP trolls, in order) and now John Kerry pole-vaults it all the way to $300m! Take a bow, JK.
Using the same formula used to derive previous inaugurations, Obama’s inauguration cost about $45m. That compares to $41m for Dubya 2004.
The AP article that started this whole mess took the normal calculation for inauguration totals, then added security, city security, traffic congestion and city crowd control, which had been excluded from the calculations for all previous inaugurations. But even that gross exaggeration doesn’t seem to have been enough for the wingnuts, so now they’ve gone and doubled it.
Good show!
.
windsor Says:
Oh, but he is Magic! Haven’t you read the L.A. Times article?
Clearly you haven’t. Here, let me make it easy for you. Try to read past the funny n-word and comprehend the rest of the content. If that doesn’t work, show it to a grown-up and ask them to explain it to you.
February 2nd, 2009 at 8:18 pmWe are idiots for bailing any of them out. And they are idiots because they just don’t get it and never will.
Everyone should sit down and email any representative they think can read, and let them know. They don’t keep up with what happens, unless we point it out.
February 2nd, 2009 at 8:57 pmWho puts the ceremony for the inauguration of our president in the same ball park as a Super Bowl party being thrown by a bank that just got a bailout?
oh
February 2nd, 2009 at 9:41 pm.
B O Y C O T
BANK of AMERICA!
.
February 3rd, 2009 at 12:41 amwindsor Says:
Mean while, back at the White House, The Great Zero hosts a Super Bowl party as the people of middle America are literally freezing to death in their homes after a massive ice storm knocked out power to millions a week ago.
Where is the government to help these people? Why haven’t these deaths been prevented?
You know, windsor, I find your compassionate conservative act phony at best, cynical at worst. You had no outrage when people struggled to heat their homes during the Bush administration when heating costs went up. You are only using their deaths as political cannon fodder in order to further your partisan purposes. You sir, are sick in the head, but it isn’t surprising coming from you. You wanted us to believe that the deaths of civilians in Pakistan is an outrage, which it is, but unlike those who genuinely care about avoiding civilian casualties, you take it as an opportunity to attack your political opponents. You were never there voicing your holy outrage when it came to the millions of deaths in Iraq because Bush was president. It wasn’t politically convenient for you to do so.
To suggest that you are compassionate and caring towards this people is even more galling considering what kind of person you truly are.
February 3rd, 2009 at 3:08 amStieglitz paraphrased in the Telegraph:
February 3rd, 2009 at 4:00 am
I’m appalled at what these pig CEO’s think is acceptable use of OUR money. Here’s my latest cartoon devoted to these swarm of locust’s that have swarmed over our fragile world.
February 4th, 2009 at 12:53 amcheck it out at my website…
http://www.whatnowtoons.com