On the campaign stump, presidential contender Rick Santorum tells his audiences that the 2009 bridge loans and tailored bankruptcy for General Motors and Chrysler did not save the car companies. It just “enriched” the unions. General Motors and Chrysler would have done just fine in a traditional bankruptcy proceeding, he says.
What nonsense.
For the record, I’ll just briefly mention that: there was no private financing available in mid-2009 to help GM and Chrysler through bankruptcy; nearly all the experts said at the time that a traditional trip to bankruptcy court would mean the death of both companies and the selling off of their assets; the bridge loans from the feds were paid back early, and the car companies are thriving; and the unions took a hit – on top of a series of prior concessions – just like everyone else involved.
Somebody needs to set Santorum straight, preferably in a public setting, with the TV news cameras rolling. I would love to see Dan Akerson and Sergio Marchionne and, yes, Alan Mulally pop up at one of these Santorum BS sessions and simply say: “You’re an idiot.”
Then we have Mitt Romney, a Michigan native who grew up around the auto business and whose father was the AMC president. And what does he have to say? Beyond his “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt” sentiments of the past, now he seems to be pandering to the right-wing talk-radio crowd by belittling the Chevy Volt.
Last week, on a Boston radio show Romney was asked how he would describe the Volt.
“Let’s see. An idea whose time has not come,” Romney responded, chuckling as he delivered the one-liner at the tail end of a 20-minute interview.
“Let’s see. An idea whose time has not come,” Romney responded, chuckling as he delivered the one-liner at the tail end of a 20-minute interview.
Let’s see, Mitt. You don’t seem to understand that many auto engineers consider the Volt a game-changer, the “moon shot” for the domestic auto industry. When it debuted, the Volt earned “car of the year” honors from virtually every trade magazine. And anyone who knows anything about cars knows that the Volt is a premier example of American initiative and innovation.
Apparently Romney, despite all his campaign rhetoric about great American entrepreneurial talent, is more interested in kow-towing to blockheads who like to bash the Volt because of its very thin thread linked to Barack Obama.
Santorum and Romney deserve to be skewered if they make it to the Michigan primary. I just wonder if this is all about pandering, or if they’re really that misinformed.
Maybe they’re getting their information from the selfish Southern senators who wanted to see Michigan die, like Bob Corker and Richard Shelby.
