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2008-12-11 Home Front Economy

House approves $14 billion auto industry bailout

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Posted by Steve White 2008-12-11 00:00|| || Front Page|| [3 views ] Top

#1 No payoff for the union.

Veto.

Posted by newc">newc 2008-12-11 00:19|| 2008-12-11 00:19|| Front Page Top

#2 Doesn't this posting belong up above, under the title "Once you have paid the Danegeld ..."?

Posted by Lone Ranger 2008-12-11 00:26|| 2008-12-11 00:26|| Front Page Top

#3 Why is the American tax payer paying for the American auto industry's refusal to change with the times. The rest of the world was trying to make more efficient vehicles and our American auto industry stood stubborn as a mule. Shouldn't they learn from their mistakes. Let that 8 Billion dollars be spent on education especially post highschool and grad school. That's what will make our world a better place in the future. Not some big ass vehicle that eats to much petroleum

Posted by b. luis grey">b. luis grey 2008-12-11 08:40|| www.bluisgrey.blogspot.com]">[www.bluisgrey.blogspot.com] 2008-12-11 08:40|| Front Page Top

#4 New for 2009, sneak preview....the BAILOUT.

Posted by Besoeker 2008-12-11 08:42|| 2008-12-11 08:42|| Front Page Top

#5 House approves $14 billion ~~auto industry~~ UAW bailout

As we say at the 'burg, fixed it for you.

Posted by Procopius2k 2008-12-11 08:48|| 2008-12-11 08:48|| Front Page Top

#6 The rest of the world was trying to make more efficient vehicles

The American car companies are making much more efficient vehicles, too, b. luis grey. Mr. Wife's first car got 7 mpg on a good day back in 1980. (I'm not sure how much the cracked engine block periodically bursting into flames affected that, although to be fair he'd bought it used from his father for one dollar.) The problem is legacy costs: UAW workers cost significantly more than auto workers anywhere else in the world, which severely cuts into profitability when prices are constrained due to competition. The other thing that must be remembered is that in general Americans like big, comfortable vehicles, and in general they are willing to pay higher running costs to have them... so the American auto manufacturers were responding to customer demand. When we moved back to the States in 1996, Mr. Wife and the trailing daughters insisted that I get a minivan, even though I would have been happy with something considerably smaller. I was only permitted by them to downsize to a Toyota RAV last year, once the tds gave up soccer with all that entails.

Posted by trailing wife">trailing wife 2008-12-11 09:05|| 2008-12-11 09:05|| Front Page Top

#7 Any chance we can get the bot-driven astroturfer replaced with that picture of the kind officer?

Posted by Mike N. 2008-12-11 09:43|| 2008-12-11 09:43|| Front Page Top

#8 Speaking of the Aztec:

Quit sacrificing the population for the benfit of the few!

Posted by swksvolFF 2008-12-11 10:28|| 2008-12-11 10:28|| Front Page Top

#9 Why not spend that money on cars? Buy $15 billion of them, and sell them for scrap. At least that way the US Taxpayers will get some of the money back.

Posted by Ebbusoter Darling of the Brontosaurs5211 2008-12-11 10:35|| 2008-12-11 10:35|| Front Page Top

#10 I wish I had the time and talent to do this cartoon:

Joe Taxpayer strapped to a stone altar, blue jeans pocket ripped open, gasping in terror. Standing behing the altar would be reid in senatorial garb, brandishing a sacrificial knife in one hand and in the other holding a wallet above his head with coins/change falling off the wallet and dribbling onto and down the altar. In the background, frank and pelosi sitting in comfy chairs looking astute. Perhaps a figure bowing down with a GM hat or shirt on, giving thanks.

Posted by swksvolFF 2008-12-11 12:22|| 2008-12-11 12:22|| Front Page Top

#11 Any chance we can get the bot-driven astroturfer replaced with that picture of the kind officer?

Maybe one of the other mods...

I say leave him up for a chew toy. Apparently he has no clue about economics, the circus that is the US auto industry, or all the problems currently caused by money being thrown at higher education.

Posted by Pappy 2008-12-11 13:17|| 2008-12-11 13:17|| Front Page Top

#12 The $14B is just a down payment until Obama and the new Dem congress can write up another bill. The bailout figure I have read tossed about is $70B.

Even that is only dressing a deep wound. There is no will to staunch the sources of internal bleeding, declining sales and huge UAW legacy costs. GM alone lost almost $40B in 2007 and now auto sales have dropped another 40% from 2007. The Big 3 will burn through the $70B and come begging or demanding for more in a year.

Posted by ed 2008-12-11 13:53|| 2008-12-11 13:53|| Front Page Top

#13 "Senator Corker has proposed an amendment that would go a long way toward improving this bill," Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, a foe of the Democratic plan.

Corker would require U.S. automakers to cut wages for union workers to levels of those paid by nonunion foreign competitors in the United States. The proposal seemed certain to be a hit with plenty of resistance from pro-union Democrats.

With Corker's amendment I wouldn't be quite as hostile to a Detroit bailout. After all, the UAW is one of the biggest problems Detroit faces. Another problem is the mortgage meltdown which prevents the automakers from getting the credit they normally would. As far as I can tell the blame for that problem lies directly at the feet of congresscritters.

Contrary to what seems to be the popular opinion these days, I still don't think American cars are all that bad. I kinda like my Pontiac. As TW says, it is big and comfortable. That's what I want when I'm rolling down the freeway. I sure don't wanna be in some rolling tin can that's gonna crumple if it gets hit by an SUV. My car has over 100,000 miles on it and it still rolls pretty well. I like trains and buses better but I don't see cars going away any time soon so we might as well have American made. I do NOT want to end up driving a Chinese car.

Posted by Ebbang Uluque6305 2008-12-11 14:47|| 2008-12-11 14:47|| Front Page Top

#14 Thank you, Ebbang Uluque6305. You make my point better than I. :-) Another point about American vs. foreign vehicles: at almost 5'0" tall, I am limited to vehicles designed for the less tall driver... but Americans tend toward the taller half of the human range, for which many foreign cars are not designed (Saabs, Volvos, BMWs and Mercedes notwithstanding).

Posted by Thusort Panda2230">Thusort Panda2230 2008-12-11 18:34|| 2008-12-11 18:34|| Front Page Top

#15 Thusort Panda2230 was I. The magically appearing Fred's Anonymizer strikes again!

Posted by trailing wife">trailing wife 2008-12-11 18:35|| 2008-12-11 18:35|| Front Page Top

#16 These car companies were not saved. Think of all the jobs that were lost?

Posted by GolfBravoUSMC 2008-12-11 18:39|| 2008-12-11 18:39|| Front Page Top

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