Posted on 12/12/2008 4:39:04 AM PST by Sub-Driver
Pelosi: Senate Republicans "irresponsible"
Speaker Nancy Pelosi got the job done in the House on the bailout, and now she's pointing fingers at Senate Republicans.
Here's her statement, released around midnight:
"The House-passed bipartisan legislation protects taxpayers, preserves environmental standards and places tough accountability measures on the auto companies to help ensure their long term viability and competitiveness. The House-passed bill demanded deep concessions from all parties -- the executives, shareholders and the union.
“Senate Republicans’ refusal to support the bipartisan legislation passed by the House and negotiated in good faith with the White House, the Senate and the automakers is irresponsible, especially at a time of economic hardship. The consequences of the Senate Republicans’ failure to act could be devastating to our economy, detrimental to workers, and destructive to the American automobile industry unless the President immediately directs Secretary Paulson to explore other short-term financial assistance options, including TARP and those available to the Federal Reserve. That is the only viable option available at this time."
They are already screwed. Remember that stock owners are residual owners -- they get paid last, once the more senior claimants (bond holders, wage earners, trade debts) get paid, but they own everything that's left over. In the case of a profitable company, that's a lot. In the case of GM, the value of the stock is dwarfed by the other claims, which is why the stock is worth close to zero.
I saw Sen. Corker of Tennessee on CNBC this morning. He said that the bill failed "over three words." They had gotten enough concessions from all of the stakeholders (management, bondholders, large stockholders, UAW pension) to have produced what amounted to a prepackaged bankruptcy. There was one thing left: in order for the companies to be profitable going forward, their future wages would have to be brought in line with those of non-union car producers (American Toyota, Honda, BMW, etc). They asked the UAW to name a date in the next year or two by which they would make their wages conform to those of their competitors, and the UAW refused.
And there you have it folks. A non-bankruptcy bailout is a continual preferential funding of the UAW by the taxpayer. They will take no less.
Pelosi needs to be reminded because of her beyond all belief irresponsiblity America is in the fix it is. She can deny and lie all she wants; but she is responsible along with our elected officials for what is happening.
She should be in jail; not Congress.
Thanks for the explanation and update.
We must flood the White House phone lines to stop RINO Bush from rescuing the corrupt UAW.
Quiet golf clap from the back of the room to you.
Nice to see someone else get it. There's damn little of that around here these days.
L
Correct. Wall Street has turned into Las Vegas East.
Well, let’s see . . . Speaker Pelosi can be contacted at speaker.house.gov/contact/
So let’s all fill her email box with loads of short concise emails about . . . OUR Values as taxpaying voters.
I agree, but is there a modern one?
B) The execs should have been planning for the future for the same period of time, at the very least they should have explored private equity markets before taking off in their private planes for DC.
My first reaction was "what a bunch of dummies". However, I'm not so sure anymore. They inherited labor agreements they can't get out from under. I noticed that Ford has indicated they are going to commit another Billion dollars to their Brazilian operations at the same time this bailout stuff has been going on.
IOW, the little 3 are making money overseas. They are investing in operations overseas. They are not looking to put anymore of their money in the USA. They must recognize that there is no way for them to make the changes here to be competitive.
LOL!
Stopping fascism is bad?
Unfortunately, Bush has said he's leaving it up to Paulson if he wants to use TARP funds. I can't believe he could be so dumb.
The conservatives in the Senate had a great plan worked out, but the UAW killed it. Now we know why. The UAW will never concede anything as long as they have their toadies in the govt to bail them out.
My Bluedog Dem, Cong. Allen Boyd, Fl. 2nd, voted against the bailout. He proudly announced it in an email early this morning.
It may be the first time he has ever voted the way I wanted.
We are not stopping anything we are losing this war.
I’ve been traveling around the world since Vietnam. Since that time the USA has steadily went downhill. Where once there was a perception that we were the hope for future generations, there is now the certainty that we have lost both our way as a nation and our county. This country can only look forward to a coming mass slaughter and a final resting place in the dust bowl of history.
Unfortunately the traitors of both parties who we have elected are simply ignorant fools incapable doing anything but greasing the skids to our common destruction.
They have to invent a new union. Quite simply, the old union model doesn’t take international competition, advances in technology and global markets into consideration.
Unions have to remain relevant to the industries in which they exist.
And yes, such a model exists (somewhat) in Japan.
And let’s be completely honest. All of the companies that are hailed as non-union here in the U.S. all have very strong unions in their home countries. Those firms wouldn’t dream of paying workers in their own countries what they pay U.S. citizens
Mom MD:
Pelosi stupid, corrupt and ugly to boot
Next?
Money isn't something that's real to Bush; he's had enough of it all of his life, and he's generous. The only problem is, it is our money, not his.
Boy it's a good thing you have abandoned the fight. I don't need this defeatism in my foxhole.
If you take the time to look you find history gives lots of examples of what happens to govt run industries when they encounter free enterprise innovation. If you wanted the little 3 to sucede over the long haul you would have supported a complete restructuring.
You may not have noticed, but the little 3 are profitable overseas and in fact while asking for the govt bailout Ford indicated they are committing another BILLION dollars to their Brazilian operations.
Whatever....I dont wnat to be in anyones foxhole I look at reality
The problem is a chapter 11 bankruptcy is not viable unless there is an arrangement for debtor in possession financing. In the current banking climate that is not going to happen only some kind of government intervention will work. The fools in Washington would rather the industruial backbone of our military strength be washed away. All of the great talk is useless in a nation defeated by its own stupidity.
I have a hard time thinking of what industries they are still in? I know they are big in govt, but in manufacturing?
All of the companies that are hailed as non-union here in the U.S. all have very strong unions in their home countries.
And which of their operations are the most profitable?
America became an economic juggernaut in part because of the opportunity to succeed. Fascism will end that.
There are still manufacturing jobs, and there could be more.
Let’s be honest here — those foreign companies are using “cheap” American labor to support the union costs for their native workers in their home country. They are using us the way that we use China — but with one exception, China forbids many of the products we produce there to be sold there.
You can’t accept any talk from someone insane.
strait-jacket her, please
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