Update: One more belated exit question. How do you suppose those 32 Republicans who voted for the House bill feel right now, with their biting of the bullet having gone for naught?

They’re probably thinking “voters are stupid, they’ll forget about this vote in 6 months”. If the economy is still in the tank in 2 years the onus will be on Team Barry. If things pick up, Team Barry can do no wrong and we’ll march forward urging that the 22nd amendment be cast aside as a racist road block to prosperity.

Why don’t the Big Oil companies bail out these car companies? They benefit the most by having the U.S. made gas guzzlers (and others) on the road.
Plus the oil companies have lots of extra profits lately…

Because they’re in the oil business, not the car business. Besides, why would they put their money into a losing investment? They wouldn’t….they’re not that dumb.

By the way, have you been paying attention to the price of oil and gas lately? HeLLooo. They’re going to need those “extra profits”(whatever that is) to carry them through the lean times that are to come. Because of those “extra profits”, you won’t see them on Capital Hill begging for a bail out. See, that’s how successful, profitable businesses stay in business. Profits have to carry them through the good times AND the bad times.

Drive a Porsche it guzzles gas, its wicked fast and comes from a winning and profitable company.

nolapol on December 11, 2008 at 4:22 PM

Even better, a company founded by Nazis. Talk about un-P.C.!

Congressmen Try To Save RV Industry
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Two northern Indiana congressmen are asking the federal government to help the nation’s struggling recreational vehicle industry.

Democrat Joe Donnelly and Republican Mark Souder sent letters to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke asking them to add loans to RV buyers and sellers to the recently created government program to encourage business and consumer lending.

I want to keep gettting Cadillacs it drives the liberals in their Subarus NUTS!

Drive a Porsche it guzzles gas, its wicked fast and comes from a winning and profitable company.

However, if five of the seven largest banks, investment banks, and insurance companies had been allowed to fail in one week in September, everyone with money in the bank or a real or potential need for credit in the next two years would have been hurt badly. A national bank run would have exhausted the FDIC insurance fund within hours and caused a general panic. Retailers would not have been able to order Christmas inventory. The margin calls as banks desperately sought to raise capital would have been devastating.

May 100 flowers bloom from the carcasses of the big 3.

That’s the real reason these companies are dying. Oh, the extra layers of management, the retirement liabilities, and the overly high wages are part of it, but the real reason is that they ruined their brand names. Then instead of fixing the problem by rebuilding their brand names with consistency, the automakers kept trying to find that one good car model that would keep them in business- and they occasionally found it, but never made good models consistently.

Ford is the only one that has consistently made good trucks. Their truck division has basically been carrying the rest of the Ford company.

Polls show that a majority of Americans oppose taxpayer dollars being used to support the Detroit 3 bailout. The bill is facing oppostion in the Senate, and it is not clear whether it will pass, even with administration support. In my dreams, America…

Did I hear correctly on CNBC this morning that Ford is now saying they don’t want the money? That’s pretty big, if so.

Either they’ve decided that bankruptcy is a viable option, or when Congress forced them back to their desks to come with a real plan, Ford actually did the work and realized they can make it happen on their own.

nukemhill on December 11, 2008 at 1:31 PM

More likely the poison pills Pelosi insisted on (the automakers accepting the California CAFE and emissions standards) were more damaging than the bailout was helpfull.

Benefits for current retirees should also be absorbed by the union members, although I would be sympathetic to some contribution from the Pension Guarantee program. The government created this mess by creating the union monopoly and encouraging the Big Three to play Socialism Lite. While it’s not fair to make the taxpayers absorb the burden, it’s better than destroying an industry that may be vital to our Defense interests in the future.

China and other auto producing countries are bailing out their auto companies.

No bailout money for any company that has union imposed work rules, ever. If workers are not willing to be highly productive, then they deserve to have their companies fail, and they deserve to lose their jobs.

Well Mark didn’t say that. It was in the news at least as far back as yesterday. Mark probably would have said something like that but he has been rather indisposed for some time now.

MB4 on December 11, 2008 at 2:14 PM

Is that a quote too, or are you getting out of that business? You’re confusing me.