Free Republic

~ EXCERPT ~ The U.S. government plans to sell a significant share of its remaining stake in General Motors Co. this summer despite the disappointing performance of the auto maker's stock, people familiar with the matter said. A sale within the next several months would almost certainly mean U.S. taxpayers will take a loss on their $50 billion rescue of the Detroit auto maker in 2009. To break even, the U.S. Treasury would need to sell its remaining stake—about 500 million shares—at $53 apiece. GM closed off 27 cents a share at $29.97 in 4 p.m. trading Monday on the...

Toyota owners stormed dealerships all over the country last week demanding "fixes" for "defects" described in wildly inflammatory press reports. Toyota apologized for "defects" that to date are still being investigated. Before whatever problems might exist had been determined and before any "fix" has been found, the government ordered Toyota to begin the largest recall of vehicles in automotive history. Toyota then shut down its U.S. plants and stopped selling eight of its popular models, including Camry and Corolla. Toyota claims these actions were "voluntary," but Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood was quoted as saying the Obama administration had ordered the...