Eliot Spitzer the former New York governor and attorney general,who used to blister American International Group in press releases,is now hitting the company as a member of the press over a"scandal."

In a recent online column for Slate titled "The Real AIGScandal" Mr. Spitzer said recently revealed payouts of taxpayercash that AIG made to big trading partners like Goldman Sachs hid"an enormous second round of cash to the same group that hadalready received TARP [Troubled Assets Relief Program] moneyalready."

"It all appears, once again, to be the same insiders protectingthemselves against sharing the pain and risk of their own badadventure," he commented.

Goldman and AIG, he noted, almost merged a few years back andquestions should be asked about their deeper relationship.

Mr. Spitzer as attorney general in 2002 was among theauthorities that reached a $1.4 billion settlement with 10 biginvestment firms in a case involving undue influence of investmentbanking interests on securities research at brokerage firms.Goldman Sachs paid $110 million as part of that agreement. In 2005as AG he sued AIG for accounting fraud.

He left his post as governor last March after his patronage of,and payments to, a prostitution ring were revealed.

His column Tuesday said the AIG payments to counterparties werejustified "with an appeal to the sanctity of contract. If AIG'scontracts turned out to be shaky, the theory goes, then the wholeedifice of the financial system would collapse."

But with workers being asked to sacrifice because of the economyhe asked, "Why can't Wall Street royalty shoulder some of theburden? Why did Goldman have to get back 100 cents on the dollar?Didn't we [taxpayers] already give Goldman a $25 billion capitalinfusion, and aren't they sitting on more than $100 billion incash?"

He suggested that Goldman Sachs Chief Executive Officer LloydBlankfein, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, former TreasurySecretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernankebe questioned under oath about what they knew about AIG and Goldmanfinances and the details of arrangements for taxpayer bailoutmoney.

Mr. Spitzer opined it appeared this was an "inside job" and AIGwas a conduit for giant capital flows "to the same old suspectswith no reason or explanation."