[Hold My Own]

Is John McCain trying to make headway with the activist investor community? Activists have been among have been among the vocal critics of lavish executive pay packages at public companies, and most of the biggest names among the activists favor Democrats in this election. (Carl Icahn, who said Barack Obama would be a terrible president, is an exception.)

Today John McCain is speaking to a small business conference on economic issues. He is expected to hit the usual Republican notes, calling for lower corporate taxes and opposing hiking capital gains taxes. But he's also going to take a shot at "excessive" corporate pay and severance packages.

"Americans are right to be offended when the extravagant salaries and severance deals of CEOs ... bear no relation to the success of the company or the wishes of shareholders," his prepared remarks released in advance of the speech say.

It's not just talk. He's going so far as to endorse the hardest versions of the "say on pay" proposals that would require shareholder approval of a CEO's pay.

"If I am elected president, I intend to see that wrongdoing of this kind is called to account by federal prosecutors. And under my reforms, all aspects of a CEO's pay, including any severance arrangements, must be approved by shareholders," he will say.

[TDDance234]

Sounds good to me. My salary had to be approved by 400 people before I was hired.

[Hold My Own]

whatever takes the taxes down on small businesses I'm for...I'm a firm believer America as a whole is not only set up to discourage people from not starting small businesses but also for them to fail...just my opinion

[SumItUp]

Shareholders of public stock should have a right to approve executive compensation above some level. What is that level.....$1 million, $5 million, $10 million or more? I do not believe that is important for this conversation. There have been two many executives with lavish pay or extreme buyout packages in exchange for poor performance and/or illegal dealings. Personally, I do not believe this is the responsibility of the federal government (along with 80% of the budget and time that is spent, but that is for another thread......I digress). This conversation should lead to responsible companies including executive compensation in their annual stockholder meetings (some companies already do this).

If I purchase 1,000 shares of a company for $100/share I am assuming some risk. I would feel cheated if the company performs poorly, the stock drops to $25 per share, the CEO is ousted and then he/she receives a buyout package for $??????????????????? that was never approved by the stockholders.

I like the idea of stockholder approval, but I dislike the fact that it is coming from a politician. The Federal government needs to stick to their responsibilities as written in the Constitution and not worry about compensation of American citizens (executive pay or minimum wage....again, I digress).

[JDUB]

sumitup lived up to his name well in that last post