Who Killed Detroit?

Townhall.com ^ | November 21, 2008 | Patrick J. Buchanan

[Kaslin]

I guess ol' Patrick wants the government to bail out GM

[Niuhuru]

No way. Detroit has been the one sucking Michigan tax money by the shovel full. With their corrupt mayors wrecking everything.

[agere_contra]

The UAW killed Detroit. It was an mugging that went bad.

[2banana]

How about Detroit being one of the most liberal and democrat cities in one of the most liberal and democrat states...

[wmfights]

It was the unions and management agreeing to their demands that killed the auto industry. Also, the unions that gave unswerving support to the Rats cut their own throat. The Rats are the ones who push the CAFE standards and have the pie in the sky green ideas.

However, in the end they will get the bail out money and will limp along. If they succeed in getting the right to unionize without a secret ballot they will immediately try to do to the other auto makers what they've done to the detroit 3.

[Wavrnr10]

It’s the labor union that thinks they are high and mighty and acting on behalf of the public. When actually all they were acting on was the pocket fattening of CEO’s pockets. The union is what killed Detroit. High wage demands that were out of context for jobs that could and were being done cheaper by other countries. There is a reason Jimmy Hoffa disappeared and now it is becoming more clear with each unemployment claim.

[KevinDavis]

He also still lives in the past..

[Gondring]

Thus when America was thrust into the Global Economy, GM and Ford had to compete with cars made overseas in factories in postwar Japan and Germany, then Korea, where health and safety standards were much lower, wages were a fraction of those paid U.S. workers, and taxes were and are often forgiven on exports to the United States.

That's the part that the Left always forgets or ignores. Passing laws that restrict Americans is one thing, but it hurts us in the global competition and we aren't the only show in town anymore.

[Condor51]

Who killed the U.S. auto industry? Easy, three letters: U-A-W.

While UAW slugs were getting paid NOT to work, Asian car makers like Hyundai and KIA were offering 10 year, 100,000 mile Warranties.

[xzins]

I agree with Patrick and with Duncan Hunter that national security demands that we have our own heavy truck/auto, heavy shipbuilding, heavy aircraft, and heavy military industries.

It’s insanity to farm those businesses out of America.

Would I give 25 billion to GM to keep it afloat given that I’ve spent 5 decades putting burdens on it that have participated in making it unproductive?

Actually, I’d do better to get rid of the unreasonable burdens and revoked any legislation that makes them uncompetitive. That’d be worth far more than 25 billion bucks.

[mouse1]

Deadly combination killed Detroit

1.) Corporate greed
Can you think of any reason why anyone should be paid tens of millions per year in salary. In addition to the salary you have all the other perks (bonuses, private chef, private plane).

2.) UAW
Despite union members making above average pay and benefits, the union wants more. I know a GM employee who makes almost $50,000 a year for sweeping floors. In the mid-west, that’s a great income for someone who never went to college, yet alone finished high school. And the union wants more money for less work. Where are the work ethics this Country was built on?

3.) Quality
Obscene costs for management, labor and retirees, government fees and taxes etc. have driven manufacturing costs up. The auto companies can either raise the price of their product or cut corners. Guess which one they chose.

[UCFRoadWarrior]

Not sure if Buchanan wants a bailout...but the reasons he outlined are why the auto industry is failing....esp the bad trade deals that do not allow US cars to compete with foreign makers.

If the government truly wants to save the American auto industry...its time to drop the liberal globalism and start slapping some tarriffs on foreign autos...until those countries open their markets to US autos.

Even in this era of liberal globalism, and basically anti-American politicians and their decisions....the world economy didnt really tank until the US economy tanked first...the US still has the most economic influence in the world...even as our politicians and other anti-Americanists try to trash this nation

We do not need bailouts...we just need to get back to old fashioned American common sense

[grellis]

If you would like to be added or dropped from the Michigan ping list, please freepmail me.

Okay, here's my amendment: On bailout oped and one bailout news story per day. One down, one to go!

[GOPJ]

While we think the Global Economy is about what is best for the consumer, they think about what is best for the nation.

BINGO. Every unionized highly regulated industry is now functioning overseas. I'm surprised the auto industry lasted as long as it did...

[frithguild]

And if GM goes Chapter 11, America will soon be out of the auto business.

Maybe BMW should start producing Packards in Alabama?

[PUGACHEV]

"Passing laws that restrict Americans is one thing, but it hurts us in the global competition and we aren't the only show in town anymore."

How does that argument square with the fact that when Toyota, Nissan, and VW build plants over here, they still produce cars profitably while Detroit does not? Leaving aside the perceived quality of the product, and the corporate philosophy, which are areas in which the foreign car makers have a clear business advantage over the Big Three, the only other differences I can see are that the foreign car makers locate in Right to Work States where the unions have less power, and that the Detroit is horribly burdened with having to pay benefits to retired workers under past union contracts.

[Kieri]

Don’t forget government regulations. It’s why Ford can’t bring a lot of high-mileage diesels to the US — environmental regs. Now that Waxman kicked Dingell to the curb, we’ll be forced to teeny weeny compacts and higher insurance bills.

[wtc911]

Drugs.

In the 70s - 80s the damage caused by cocaine and reefer use on the line was so rampant that when GM opened Saturn away from Detroit they made zero tolerance and mandatory random testing a condition of employment.

[frithguild]

I agree with Patrick and with Duncan Hunter that national security demands that we have our own heavy truck/auto, heavy shipbuilding, heavy aircraft, and heavy military industries.

Assuming the USA gets in a shooting war, what can the auto makers contribute toward it? Tanks? Tanks are obsolete. Aircraft? How are they tooled to produce F-35's?

Success in warfare these days does not depend on heavy armor - it depends upon acquisition of information and precise and stealthy delivery of destructive power. It depends upon microprocessors and carbon fiber, not heavy industry.

This is why entry into the present Iraq war did nothing for the market value, i.e. stock price, for our heavy industries like the big 3. The national security argument is a false one. Not according to me - according to the market, which is much smarter that any one of us.

[70th Division]

What scares me is that like AIG, GM will take the money and invest it in India or China. They need to fire the executives and go Chapter 11. You can't tell me that GM can not find some bright, articulate, energetic, forward thinking engineer or exec that they can pay $300K to and will do the same job as the figure head that GM has now? If you get paid 10 MIl I expect you to WORK FOR IT not fly around and give motivational speeches.