A humorous interlude demonstrates how the Administration's quick-fire plans to punish Wall Street have in fact benefited firms such as Goldman which are increasingly paying bonuses in stock. As Bloomberg reports, Goldman priced the share bonus at Firday's Goldman closing price of $154.12, which represents an 8.1% two-day slide in the stock price, in essence awarding Goldman employees with a comparably higher number of shares. With Goldman already trading at $157, or nearly 2% higher from Friday, Goldmanites have also locked in a short-term capital appreciation to boot. Ironically, Goldman's gain is JP Morgan's loss, which priced bonus shares as of the January 20th closing price, which was followed by a nearly 10% drop in JPM stock. Once again, Goldman gets the better of Obama. Obviously, assuming some form of lock up, the real question remains: where will the financial be in 3 years - the traditional full vesting period.

From Bloomberg:

“The unintended consequences of some of this craziness coming out of Washington are breathtaking,” said Michael Holland, who oversees more than $4 billion as chairman of Holland & Co. in New York. “In the process of trying to score political points, they have taken the target, in this case the so-called fat-cat bankers, and provided them with a reward.”

Morgan Stanley priced its stock awards on Jan. 21, the day Obama announced his plan, the firm said in a regulatory filing. Morgan Stanley shares tumbled 4.2 percent that day and 5.3 percent on Jan. 22. JPMorgan Chase & Co. priced stock for most employees on Jan. 20, a person familiar with the matter said. Its shares tumbled 9.8 percent during the next two days.

Perhaps it is too much to ask of the administration to consider a "plan" for more than 24 hours in the future before implementing it.