President Barack Obama knocks Wall Street for being “motivated only by the appetite for quick kills and bloated bonuses.”

One result of this mindset is US Treasury Department “pay Czar” Kenneth Feinberg, who seeks to limit the salaries paid to key executives at companies that accepted federal bailout funds.

The government’s effort to limit pay is a brash, brutal, and unwarranted intervention into the private sector.

So far, Washington’s decision to impose pay cuts covers the top-paid 25 employees at each of the major companies that accepted federal bailouts: Citigroup (C), Bank of America (BAC), American International Group (AIG), General Motors, GMAC, Chrysler, and Chrysler Financial.

But Uncle Sam also seeks to regulate compensation of thousands of lenders. It’s a good bet that the regulations are aimed squarely at Wall Street and will be expanded over time.

A survey completed by Bloomberg News found that bankers expect fat bonuses this year.

“In the financial world, most executives expect their bonuses to match or exceed last year’s, with one in 10 predicting their best-ever payout,” Bloomberg reports.

Shouldn’t everyone, especially those in government, say “Good!”? If nothing else, fat paychecks and bonuses are heavily taxed as income, boosting tax revenue.

New York State faces a budget deficit of about $10 billion. Limiting Wall Street pay will punch a bigger hole in the state’s budget -- and New York City has been hit hard in the downturn, too.

For starters, spending bonus money boosts the real-estate market by generating fees, getting taxable income from agents, raising property values, and increasing property taxes. Why would anyone want to strangle the golden goose?

If the crackdown at financial firms persists, Wall Street’s top talent will avoid pay limits by moving to hedge funds and private equity funds that -- so far, at least -- aren’t covered by the new rules.