Posted on 01/26/2006 12:17:48 AM PST by Aussie Dasher
US President George W Bush thinks hard pressed American auto giants, General Motors Corp and Ford Motor Co, should develop better cars instead of looking to Washington for help.
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Mr Bush said he had not talked to the struggling companies about their finances.
But he hinted that he would take a dim view of a government bailout of the top two US carmakers, the newspaper reported.
"I have been very reluctant – I'm mindful of the past where at one point in time, a predecessor of mine was faced with that same dilemma," Mr Bush was quoted as saying. "I would hope I wouldn't be asked to make that decision."
Asked if he had spoken to GM chief executive Rick Wagoner or Ford chief executive Bill Ford jnr, Mr Bush told the newspaper, "Not about their balance sheets".
"And I haven't been asked by any automobile manufacturer about a bailout," he said.
Asked if the Government should take any pre-emptive action, Mr Bush was quoted as saying, "I think it's very important for the market to function".
Mr Bush suggested he felt optimistic about the companies' prospects, according to the newspaper.
Ford and GM have said they would close plants and cut tens of thousands of jobs.
Competition, particularly from companies based in Asia, soaring health care and pension expenses and production costs have increased financial pressures on the unionised companies.
The newspaper said while neither GM nor Ford had sought a bailout, they havhade dropped hints they would welcome government help in areas such as coping with rising health care and pension burdens for their workers as well as the high costs of developing fuel-efficient vehicles.
Mr Bush suggested that one way automakers could make more appealing products was to promote cars using alternative fuels, a topic he plans to mention in his state of the union address next week.
He said in the interview that US automakers could find new market share in the competition to sell vehicles that run on alternative fuels.
"As these automobile manufacturers compete for market share and use technology to try to get consumers to buy their product, they also will be helping America become less dependent on foreign sources of oil," Mr Bush told the newspaper.
Yeah, ALGORE would have made Ford produce better cars. After all, he invented the inter net.
Just because corrupt union thugs bought off corrupt Republican and democRat thugs doesn't mean we have to pay for it.
Hank Rearden wrote:
I wonder if American citizens will finally rise up when the D.C. parasites try to dump all the pensions and medical plans on the taxpayers?
Just because corrupt union thugs bought off corrupt Republican and democRat thugs doesn't mean we have to pay for it.
----I Agree with you 1 million percent !
Disband the DOT and EPA, let American car makers build cars I might actually want to buy.
OK then, it's back to restoring a classic.
Isn't it interesting that a 30 year old version of the same car, Mustang, Corvette, Camaro, Jaguar, etc., is so often worth more than a new one in similar condition?
But were supposed to believe the new cars are "better"!
my hubby's company was able to do what they did with the absolute approval of govt officails and nobody wept for us......infact, I think various govt officials paved the way for people like us to get the shaft....
Hmmm.... My C6 2005 Vette is so much better than the previous ones. However, I may be just a wee bit prejudiced. :-)
I am sorry to read this. Sigh.
I don't know you and didn't have a damn thing to do with it; you don't think you're entitled to hire the government to steal my money at gunpoint and give it to you, do you?
cherry, im sorry to hear about your situation. yes, i absolutely think the govt cleared the way for most companies to reneg on their contractual obligations to you and your husband. the method they use is to cut a few out at a time, so no great rukus gets started, witness some posts in response to you right here in this thread. of course you and i know that if it was them who was being cheated out of fair returns from their labor, theyd howl for washington to come fix the problem. hope all goes well for you in the future. btw, to all those who think clearly, no company exec ever had a gun put to his head to sign a workers agreement including pensions or medical or whatever, they made contract and they should be forced to fulfill the contract. period.
I was in an Econ class yesterday where the professor mentioned how Bush gave the steel industry their "protections" (the tariffs on foreign steel) and whatever else they needed, claiming they would get themselves "up to date" to compete. Well, for the two years that those tariffs sat in place, they sat on their butts, doing nothing and now the tariffs have expired. Have they began crying to Bush to renew the tariffs? It wouldn't surprise me if they did.
I frankly feel sorry for those caught in the middle of these bankruptcies and scale-backs. However, it is NOT up to the taxpayers of this nation to keep bailing out these companies when they make bad decisions and side with the unions. I wonder how many of these companies would have folded long ago if "we the people" hadn't bailed them out?
On Monday, I heard Neal Boortz mention how it is the fault of the unions for these problems with the U.S. automakers. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to listen to the rest of what he had to say for rushing to class.
Can someone explain to me how the unions are responsible for this? I have a vague idea how but need a little more "splainin'".
The DOT, particularly, bespeaks of corruption, in my experience. The recent Transportation Bill that passed had about every type of pork in it imaginable. I'm not sure, not at all, that the pork will benefit any Americans directly, but it certainly seems to be pleasing to pork dependent politicians in both parties. I was disgusted when I read even some of it, while the Senate, particularly, was all aglow at what they've carved.
Primarily, the unions have driven up company costs for healthcare and other benefits. Those costs are then, also primarily, passed on directly to consumers in higher costs for cheaper products.
Some also maintain that unions have interfered with attempts to improve quality. After hearing from a few auto industry folks, I am no longer certain of this, but I remain deeply suspicious of union involved in inferior component quality and assembly problems.
I'm sorry to heart that, too, cherry. I am curious, though, what do you consider a decent retirement age?
GW43 is most correct on this one. Let the market work, the fed' need not mettle in the auto business.
The states should keep all the gasoline taxes. They should not send any of this money to Washington.
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