The whole problem with the bailout was selling it to the public. The public didn't want to "pay" for it, or lose potential tax cuts over it, but what they didn't realize is, without the bailout, banks would be unable to provide loans to people probably with a credit rating lower than 700 (ie: 90% of the country), especially mortgages, as it would be too risky to lose money in that economy. Once you lose mortgages, it sends shockwaves down the entire rest of the economy, namely appliances, retail, etc. Even car loans are being affected, Toyota announced a 30% loss in profit now, not because they can't produce the cars, but because no one can get car loans to buy the cars.
The bailout was a necessary evil, but there are a lot of people getting away with a lot here, especially higherups in these companies.