This provision was not in the House version of the bill, and was not in the Senate version of the bill. And now Carl Levin wants to sneak it into the conference report — despite the fact that Republican supporters are insisting that the bill be slimmed down? General Motors Corp. may win protection from a tax liability of as much as $7 billion when | Read More »
There’s a lot of self-congratulation on the left about how open and accessible the Obama administration will be, but it seems there’s a lot of reluctance among his representatives to talk about the Big 3 bailout.
Was it really just a few weeks ago that the United Auto Workers came to Washington with the Big 3, and promised to work together with management to ensure the companies’ viability — if only Washington would bail them out? Didn’t the UAW ultimately agree (if unhappily) to the requirement in the bailout that the companies reduce their labor costs to a level comparable to | Read More »
According to the Wall Street Journal, the United Auto Workers don’t want to get ahead of themselves and agree to too much in the way of concessions on compensation: Although the UAW has said it is ready to negotiate, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said Monday it is unclear what kind of reductions it will have to agree to. The Treasury Department has said GM must | Read More »
Jim Bunning supported bailing out the Big 3: I have previously said that I would support federal assistance for the companies if they undertake a Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring. Federal financing and warranty guarantees would enable the companies to emerge from that restructuring successfully and more quickly than they otherwise could. Senators Shelby and Ensign have an amendment to do just that, and I will | Read More »
As usual, Frank is nothing else if not honest: “No. We’re not propping up companies. That’s your mistake,” he tells Stahl, who had asked him about taxpayer money going to prop up companies that had made bad decisions. “We’re propping up individuals. The world doesn’t consist of companies. The world is people. The country is people.” When Stahl points out that Frank is then talking | Read More »
Representatives of the UAW, Ford, Chrysler and GM met today with Speaker Pelosi to outline their interest in a big new pot of taxpayer money: Lawmakers jump-started a $25 billion direct loan program for automakers as part of the continuing resolution (PL 110-329) signed into law by President Bush earlier this fall. It remains unclear, however, when those funds will begin to flow, a situation | Read More »
Regardless of who wins Tuesday’s election, the next great argument in Washington is whether there will be a second ‘stimulus bill’ (ie, bailout). Constituencies are already lining up. House leaders have heard from mayors, governors and state transportation officials, looking to Washington to save them from the balanced budget requirements imposed on them. Environmentalists are hoping to add billions to fight global warming, and other | Read More »
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