If it's true that AIG's collapse would "bring down Europe" - not to mention Merrill and Goldman - why is the US not involving Europe more in this bailout? Let Europe pitch in to prop up their banks who made stupid decisions and let Goldman and Merrill pay for the bailout as well. Failure to link these companies to the bailout is more bad policy. After the pay changes were proposed by Obama, Goldman was out there talking about repaying their TARP money which is great, but don't let them off the hook for AIG.

Whether Goldman is there tomorrow or not impacts Goldman much more than it does for the rest of the country. Yes it would be another horrible blow to the economy but at this point, who is counting? Henry Paulson's old firm has received an easy ride in this crisis and it's time that changes. AIG's collapse is not only about Europe, so let's quit acting as though it is.
The U.S. government rescued giant insurer American International Group in part because its collapse would dramatically hurt European banks, a senior Democratic lawmaker said on Thursday.

The U.S. government has bailed out AIG three times since Sept. 16 and committed about $180 billion to keep the insurer alive and doing business.

"One of the reasons we had to rescue AIG was the fact that it was going to bring down Europe," Pennsylvania Rep. Paul Kanjorski told reporters after his subcommittee held a hearing on systemic risk.

Later, in an interview with Reuters, Kanjorski said he was told that a large number of AIG's counterparties were European.

"That's why we could not allow AIG to fail as we allowed Lehman (Brothers) to fail, because that would have precipitated the failure of the European banking system," he said.

Some lawmakers are pushing the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department to reveal AIG's counterparties and have expressed frustration over the secretive nature of the government bailouts.

At a Senate Banking Committee hearing earlier in the day, chairman Christopher Dodd, a Democrat, criticized what he called a "stunning" lack of transparency and accountability about exactly where the billions in rescue money have gone.
Follow the money and quit the charade of pretending as though it's not possible to get answers.