Republicans wary of car deal

Republicans wary of car deal

We agree with Republican senators during the hearing have told the US car industry (GM, Ford, and Chrysler) it should consider bankruptcy protection rather than using American taxpayer’s dollar to bailout the shaky UAW. Because ...
1) The government bailout UAW ONLY effect a temporary solution to American-made automobile industry; but WON’T effect a permanent cure-all to the UAW’s high-cost demands. The result is lesson drawn from United Airlines' labour-union’s 1/2 failing partnership straightforward to bankruptcy. (from US$80 dollar per share UAL stock value to $0.00, that’s union-workers' brain !)
2) American people only know how to blame on the domestic economic recession to Republican leadership, but American folks have never think about WHY they are driving an imported Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, ... BMW, LEXUS, ... and leave out GM, Ford, and Chrysler. Last 2 years, I remembered to suggest the HKCE Donald Tsang led Hong Kong Special Administration Region, HKSAR government to contract American-made Ford vehicles to use for Hong Kong’s taxis system; they (the Chinese bureaucrats) ignored the unbalanced trade deficit issue, and Ford Motor got an empty-hand contract.
3) Republicans undertake a thankless task from UAW to dialogue with American auto-crisis during the 2008 General Election; UAW votes to lean on Democrat Marxist Obama for US President. Too hard to comfort UAW, Republicans wary of the RISKY (R-Class) American car industry bailout deal.
4) 2012 DAN QUAYLE : American Patriotism NOT too late to love America, to buy American-made products.

Unions not helpin' matters...
:rolleyes:
UAW’s ‘No Concessions’ Policy Killing Big Three, Expert Says
Friday, November 21, 2008 – The Big Three automakers are forced to pay 85 percent of union benefits to members of the United Auto Workers union who aren’t working – even if their plants have been closed.

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Industry analysts say union labor agreements that obligate the Big Three to pay millions of dollars to workers who are no longer working are a major reason why the automakers are in trouble – a problem that no short-term bailout can fix. During hearings last week where the chief executives of Ford, Chrysler and General Motors appeared before the Senate Banking Committee, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) raised the issue.

Corker asked Rick Wagoner, CEO of General Motors, why with all of the measures he has taken to prevent a collapse, his company was still not making money. “Is it because of the (United Auto Workers) union?” Corker asked pointedly.

Wagoner, who demurred from answering directly, said that even at plants that are closing, “85 percent” of union employment benefits still “have to be paid.” He said that GM has had to restructure and reduce the cost of operating in the U.S., but the company still pays for employees that are not currently working at “idle facilities.” Chrysler Chairman Robert Nardelli, facing a similar question from Corker, confirmed that “agreements are in place” between Chrysler and UAW that, regardless of demand, Chrysler must still operate at a pay rate of 95 percent of wages for employees not currently working at idle facilities.

More [url:
http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=39803[/url]

Record recession could make it hard for car companies to pay off 'bridge loan'...
:confused:
Current recession could break records
WASHINGTON, Dec. 2,`08 (UPI) — The current economic downturn could break the duration record for a US recessions dating back to World War II, economists said.

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The National Bureau of Economic Research, official historians for the U.S. economy, said Monday that the recession began December 2007, putting the current morass ahead of the 10.5-month average for a post-World War II recession, The New York Times reported Tuesday. The longest recessions on record, downturns of 1973-74 and 1980-81, lasted 16 months, the Times said.

Data suggest the current downturn is far from over. Manufacturing activity fell to its lowest level in 26 years in November, consumer spending has been declining and Shela Bair, chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, warned last month that 4.5 million people could lose homes to foreclosure.

“Right now, we still seem to be in an accelerating downslope of this economic cycle," Ethan Harris, head of U.S. economic research at Barclays Capital told The Washington Post. “We will rewrite the record book on length for this recession," said Allen Sinai, president of Decision Economics in Lexington, Mass. “It’s still arguable whether it will set a new record on depth. I hope not, but we don’t know."

[url=http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2008/12/02/Current_recession_could_break_records/UPI-79211228222807/:
Source[/url]

GM fessin' up...
:o
GM says it “disappointed” and “betrayed” consumers
Mon Dec 8, 2008 - General Motors Corp on Monday unveiled an unusually frank advertisement acknowledging it had “disappointed” and sometimes even “betrayed” American consumers as it lobbies to clinch the federal aid it needs to stay afloat into next month.

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The print advertisement marked a sharp break from GM’s public stance of just several weeks ago when it sought to justify its bid for a U.S. government on the grounds that the credit crisis had undermined its business in ways executives could never have foreseen. It also came as Chief Executive Rick Wagoner, who has led the automaker since 2000, faces new pressure to step aside as GM seeks up to $18 billion in federal funding. “While we’re still the U.S. sales leader, we acknowledge we have disappointed you," the ad said. “At times we violated your trust by letting our quality fall below industry standards and our designs became lackluster."

The unsigned open letter, entitled “GM’s Commitment to the American People” ran in the trade journal Automotive News, which is widely read by industry executives, lobbyists and other insiders. In the ad, GM admits to other strategic missteps analysts and critics have said hastened its recent decline. “We have proliferated our brands and dealer network to the point where we lost adequate focus on the core U.S. market," the ad said. “We also biased our product mix toward pick-up trucks and SUVs."

But GM also says in the ad that it was hit by forces beyond its control as it tried to complete a restructuring earlier this year. “Despite moving quickly to reduce our planned spending by over $20 billion, GM finds itself precariously and frighteningly close to running out of cash," the ad says.

A failure of GM would deepen the current recession and put “millions of job at risk," according to the ad, which also highlights the automaker’s pledged restructuring and intention to begin repaying taxpayers in 2011. GM spokesman Greg Martin said the ad was an attempt by the automaker to present “a pledge directly to the public." “We believe we need to deliver this commitment unfiltered since quite a bit of media commentary has not kept pace with our actual progress to transform the company," Martin said.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, a Democrat from Connecticut who is central to the effort to craft an auto bailout bill, on Sunday said GM should replace Wagoner. GM says Wagoner has the support of the company’s board.

[url:
http://www.reuters.com/article/wtMostRead/idUSTRE4B738W20081208[/url]