As a longtime reporter, I can spot a "that's-gonna-cause-a-stink" comment a mile away, especially when coming from the mouth of a politician. And a recent comment by Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley during a radio interview was especially cringeworthy.

In an interview broadcast Monday on Cedar Rapids-based radio station WMT, Grassley, a Republican, suggested that AIG fatcats follow in the footsteps of dishonored Japanese business leaders. They should come before the nation, bow and apologize, Grassley said. Or, consider suicide.

"I don't know whether the ($165 million in bonuses) is an issue as much as just the chutzpah of the people running AIG," Grassley said. "The attitude of these corporate executives and bank executives, and most of them are in New York, that somehow they're not responsible for their company going into the tank ... I suggest, you know, obviously maybe they ought to be removed, but I would suggest that the first thing that would make me feel a little bit better towards them [is] if they would follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say I'm sorry and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide."

I understand Grassley's and everyone else's rage at AIG. These arrogant fools were gambling, nothing more, nothing less, as they created a subatomic financial world of derivatives and credit default swaps. They would have destroyed their company and brought down the world's economy with it had it not been for a mindbendingly huge bailout by U.S. taxpayers. Why are they getting millions as a reward?

An apology and some groveling are in order at the very least. I like jail time, too. And some kind of massive, retroactive tax that would avoid the legal issues of the bonus payments being contractually obligated and simply take all the bonus money back. But suicide? That was out of line.

The Grassley comment is great fodder for the blogosphere. A narrow Google search turned up 11,000-plus hits. The Iowa senator's comments are generating some mixed reviews and snarky comments. It's not likely to cost Grassley his career. He's been a senator since 1980 and enjoys widespread, deserved popularity. A hog farmer from the tiny Butler County town of New Hartford, Grassley is a pragmatic Midwesterner, someone who reaches across the aisle, and a strong advocate for seniors. He's also done incredible work ferreting out waste in Medicare, particularly when it comes to unproven drugs and technologies. A letter signed by Grassley surely strikes fear in the heart of pharmaceutical industry executives.

So that's why Grassley's comment is disappointing. But it's also why he deserves some slack. He's been a good, trustworthy senator. I may be a bit biased since he's from my home county in Iowa and he's been a good advocate for my hometown of Parkersburg, which was leveled by a tornado last spring. Grassley's remark wasn't smart. But it was also a rare slip by a hardworking senator who has more than earned his state's longlasting goodwill.