Bailout & Switch

Reporters in our Washington bureau have been tracking the former congressional staffers (and members) now on the payroll for companies getting taxpayer bailouts. The full list is here. A sample of the lobbying firepower and Big Finance's return on investment:

AIG

ASSETS: Moses Mercado, Obama campaign adviser, former deputy chief of staff, Rep. Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.)
Ronald Christie, former special assistant, President George W. Bush
Hazen Marshall, former staff director, Senate budget committee
Gregory Nickerson, former staff director, House Ways and Means subcommittee
Robert Leonard, former chief counsel and staff director, House Ways and Means committee
LOBBYING EXPENDITURES (2008): $9.7 million
BAILOUT: $180 billion
ROI: 1.85 million percent