Talkingpointsmemo: Congress Probing AIG Spin Shop

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Congress Probing AIG Spin Shop

By Zachary Roth - April 14, 2009

Congress is demanding information from AIG about reports that the bailed-out insurance giant has four PR firms on its payroll -- and about its recent PR blitz aimed at discrediting former CEO Hank Greenberg.

In a letter sent this morning to AIG chief Ed Liddy and obtained exclusively by TPMmuckraker, House Oversight committee chair Ed Towns requests detailed information on AIG's PR expenses, specifically mentioning Hill & Knowlton, and Mark Penn's Burson-Marsteller, two high-priced experts in Washington spin that have signed on to represent the firm.

For both the PR firms, Towns wants to know: when and why they were hired; which staffers at the firms have worked with AIG; and which subcontractors they've hired, and for what. Towns also wants copies of all documents exchanged between AIG and both of the two firms, including bills and payments.

Burson-Marsteller and Hill & Knowlton are both among the heaviest of hitters in shaping Beltway opinion. Just yesterday, Burson announced (sub req.) that Dana Perino, President Bush's last White House press secretary, had signed on as "chief issues counselor." In addition to CEO Penn, who masterminded Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, Burson's roster also boasts former Clinton administration communications director Don Baer, former Clinton speechwriter Josh Gottheimer, and top Bush adviser Karen Hughes. As for Hill & Knowlton, it has represented Wal-Mart, the CIA, and a string of other big-name clients. Stacie Paxton, the DNC's national press secretary during the 2008 campaign, recently joined the firm as a vice president.

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