AIG General Counsel Who Protested Meager $500K To Have Her Bluff Called, Get Sacked

It appears the only thing worse in this world than a measly $500,000 salary is getting no salary at all. And that's exactly what is about to happen to AIG General Counsel, Anastasia Kelly, who before joining the bankrupt firm, was a GC at such reputable organizations as MCI/WorldCon (sic) and Fannie Mae. To paraphrase the objections against a very prominent Treasury Secretary recently, the question is not whether or not she will leave the job, the question is how she got it in the first place. Kelly, who recently was protesting the $500k salary cap imposed by Pay Despot Ken Feinberg, yet was in Benmosche's black book, will likely be out of the organization, presumably involuntarily, by year end. We are confident that with the economy rocking she will be able to find a job that pays her much more in line with her true skills... which based on her track record hopefully involves more than leading three sequential companies straight into bankruptcy.

More from Bloomberg:

Kelly, 60, said in a Dec. 1 letter she was prepared to leave AIG by yearend because of impending compensation restrictions, and the insurer hasn’t sought to keep her, said the people, who declined to be identified because an announcement hasn’t been made. Michael Leahy, a lawyer who works at AIG’s New York headquarters, is among candidates being considered to succeed Kelly, said one of the people.

Kelly joined AIG in 2006 to help the insurer recover from regulatory probes that led to the retirement of former Chief Executive Officer Maurice “Hank” Greenberg. Kelly, former general counsel at MCI/WorldCom and Fannie Mae, didn’t endear herself to AIG’s current CEO, Robert Benmosche, who took over in August, the people said.

The five executives who said they may resign are Kelly; Rodney Martin, who heads a non-U.S. life unit; William Dooley, a senior vice president in charge of the financial-products division; Nicholas Walsh, head of the non-U.S. property casualty operations, and John Doyle, who is in charge of the U.S. property casualty unit, the people said.

This is the most surprising part: how is this woman in the firm to begin with:

Kelly was among managers in a September 2008 e-mail listing people who should be dismissed over AIG’s near-collapse, according to Fortune magazine. The so-called “kill list” was written by then-controller David Herzog, now chief financial officer. He urged former CEO Robert Willumstad to “clean the slate” for his government-appointed successor, Edward Liddy, the magazine reported.

When you have little to lose you may as well make a stand against getting paid like a simple peasant. Even if at the end of the day your bluff gets called. Like in this case.

And in case you feel bad for Kelly's severance package- don't:

The executives’ severance awards may equal as much as two years of salary and bonuses, AIG said in a June regulatory filing. Leahy and Mark Herr, a spokesman for AIG, declined to comment. Kelly didn’t immediately return a phone call and e-mail seeking comment.

Nothing changes - the taxpayer-funded existence of those that who destroyed this country continues.