Posted on 12/16/2008 11:05:49 AM PST by lewisglad
administration could act as early as Wednesday to approve an automaker bailout from its bank rescue fund, with conditions likely to reflect at least those approved by the U.S. House of Representatives last week, key lawmakers and other sources said on Monday.
A Treasury Department official said the agency and auto company executives continued to review financial and other information, and that no decision had been made. The White House is actively involved in the matter, officials said.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said, however, the government would have to be satisfied the industry could survive and compete in order to receive help.
"We would have to assure ourselves that this was a step on the path to long-term viability," Paulson told Fox News.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, says the administration will likely use part of the $700 billion fund established in October to stabilize the financial services sector, rather than pushing the companies into bankruptcy, as some lawmakers have urged.
"That would be my expectation and I think all the signals coming from the White House are that they know that bankruptcy is not an option and that (stabilization) funds are the only recourse that they have," Pelosi said at a news conference.
General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC, which is owned by Cerberus Capital Management, have said they need immediate injections of cash to avoid near-term collapse.
Ford Motor Co is seeking a government line of credit to be used if its financial conditions deteriorate more than expected in 2009.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Because the 14 to 25 billion spent on this auto bailout will be a lot a cheaper than the 100s of billions that it would cost for benefits, welfare, and retraining for millions losing their jobs in an auto manufacturers bailout.
I am sure the non-American market types in the GOP will not like this....but its time for them to stop the “Domo arigato Mr Toyota” crap and return to America....esp that their foreign automakers (US taxpayer subsidized) will be whacked if the US auto makers fail
I think he has lost his mind. He looks old and crazy to me. When the Congress voted that 700 billion that gave Paulson a blank check to spen any way he wanted.
Boy were we snookered. Bush is going to be handing out this money as he wants. He may give each illegal crossing the border a few thousand as they come in. He will go down in history as one of the worst Presidents ever. He will be competing with LBJ and Carter for the lowest of the low.
He has been such a disappointment. I never regretted my support for Nixon, but I regret supporting GWB. Richard Nixon never betrayed the people who put in the office. Remember the Silent Majority? He was always on our side unlike GWB. GWB destoyed the careers of many good Representatives and Senators thanks to his ineptness.
FWIW, I did not buy a Chrysler product until they had repaid the government loan they received. They repaid it quickly.
I will also never buy a Harley Davidson motorcycle for similar reasons.
Bottom line is, the WH feels like it can't renege now, so it's stuck coming up with something to tide things over until Obama comes into office.
One last stick in the eye of conservatives by Bush!
Amen!
The reason the industry is in trouble is because Americans are not buying the cars.
Is that going to change?
The American auto industry, like any other industry, must compete on the market.
This money is just throwing good money after bad.
Given the state of the economy, even the foreign automakers are hurting. So who is going to buy new cars right now?
Since this bailout has already been voted down, this just isn’t right. And the open checkbook given to Paulsen is just ridiculous.
My Chevy truck leaks at its front windshield; my Ford truck leaks at its rear window. Hmmmm ... that new full-size Toyota Tundra, made in Texas by non-UAW labor, is looking better every day.
I know the feeling.
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