"Americans are asking quite simply, why pay these people anything at all," Liddy told a House of Representatives subcommittee. "Here's why: I am trying desperately to prevent an uncontrolled collapse of that business."
Liddy said some employees had already given back their entire bonuses. Others who had received retention bonuses had since left the company.
Liddy said the payouts were necessary to retain top employees with the specialized knowledge to dispose of $2.7 trillion in complex securities that ended up dragging the company to the brink of collapse last year.