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Politics : President Barack Obama -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ChinuSFO who wrote (52755)	3/30/2009 1:49:15 AM
From: koan	Respond to of 149317

EU doesn't want to stimulate? But I do not feel like I can see much.

To: ChinuSFO who wrote (52755)	3/30/2009 2:56:47 AM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 149317

U.S. can't run auto companies _______________________________________________________________ LEAD EDITORIAL THE DETROIT FREE PRESS March 29, 2009 The federal money flowing to Detroit to help struggling automakers was always going to come with strings. But there’s a fine line between holding General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC accountable for a pile of taxpayer cash and inappropriate government efforts to actually run the companies. President Barack Obama’s Auto Task Force may have crossed that line over the weekend, when it asked for GM Chairman Rick Wagoner’s resignation and demanded that Chrysler link up with Fiat in 30 days, or give up on any more government aid. It’s hard to see how either move is far shy of actually running the businesses. And if that’s the case, if the auto companies’ federal overseers have decided they’ll make managerial as well as financial decisions, this sets an awful precedent, both on general principle and in these particular instances. The principle at stake says government shouldn’t manage industry. GM and Chrysler have their own internal managers who run the business. The government is just supposed to be helping with funds, and oversight, to help the companies through a tough economy and a serious industry transition. Banks, mortgage companies and other bailout recipients aren’t being subjected to government meddling, or even much oversight. Why are GM and Chrysler being treated differently? Firing Wagoner also is a bad move for GM. Whatever his past mistakes (again, there were many), he has led the company’s efforts to restructure so far, and it’s his team that created the plans that won federal support in the first place. At minimum, his departure will be a terrible disruption. Moreover, the government’s track record setting policy that affects the auto industry is atrocious. Car companies have been flogged for not producing enough small, efficient vehicles, but the government eschews a national gas tax that would keep demand for such vehicles high. The companies have been derided for exorbitant labor costs, but in too many instances, government trade policy doesn’t help them by holding other countries to decent labor standards. Too many in Washington fundamentally misunderstand the auto industry and its needs. Why on earth, then, should they be trusted to make key decisions about how auto companies run? Detroit needs help forging a future around auto manufacturing. It’s tough to see how these latest moves make that happen.

To: ChinuSFO who wrote (52755)	3/30/2009 2:58:01 AM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 149317

Obama would not have been elected without very strong union support - especially in the Midwestern states...He must force the automakers to radically restructure BUT he is taking a big risk by not providing the automakers with additional support in these troubled economic times...Most Americans see a very BIG difference in the way Wall Street is treated and then they look how Main Street is treated...the special treatment almost always goes to Wall Street...Even conservative businessmen like Wilbur Ross (who is a turnaround expert) say it would not be wise to send a firm as large as GM into bankruptcy right now - there will be some very big unintended consequences beyond lots of job losses...One problem with Team Obama's Auto Task force is that it has very little automotive experience on it -- Jerry York mentioned this in a Bloomberg interview in the last few days.