John Chiang: Tim Sloan did not deserve a raise

California treasure John Chiang sent out a public letter today:

If you fail at your job, you shouldn’t receive a raise. That’s especially true when the raise being offered is $4.6 million.

But according to a just-released report, that’s exactly what Wells Fargo offered CEO Tim Sloan last year after he failed to reform the bank.

Wells Fargo is now mired in a milieu of scandal and litigation, with no end in sight. They’ve already been hit with massive fines and penalties by federal regulators for astounding failures of leadership so severe that they’ll serve as an example of how not to run a bank for generations.

To award a $4.6 million performance bonus to their CEO in the midst of it all is shameful and a clear indication that Wells Fargo isn’t taking their responsibility to consumers seriously.

By now it should be clear: Wells Fargo’s CEO is part of the problem — not the solution.

As regulators continue to issue new sanctions and as further abuses are exposed, Tim Sloan continues to shirk his responsibilities, shift the blame, and proclaim Wells Fargo — not the consumers they defrauded — is the victim.

Instead of offering him a massive raise, the $4.6 million Wells Fargo gave to Sloan could have been better spent investing in procedures that would prevent further fraud. Or they could have created a reparations fund to engage the communities targeted and fleeced by Wells Fargo.

I’ve already promised to raise holy hell at Wells Fargo’s board meeting in Des Moines next month if they don’t replace their CEO and enact real reforms. And I’ll keep fighting to stop bank fraud as your next governor.