We are spending billions bailing out the auto and banking industries. We say we can’t let them fail. If that is true, why would we initiate programs that will cause them to fail?
My only explanation is a government out of control. Panic is the game. Announce a result, then hurry to put something together that will pass muster as a plan. Or, like Gitmo, just clam up and refuse to discuss it. On Meet the Press, John Bayner, House Minority Leader stole my plan of two weeks ago. Move them to Alcatraz.
The auto industry is required to come back to congress and show they have a plan to get more money. Today, President Obama signed an executive order allowing the Governor of California to put more economic distress on his $40 billion in debt state. It’s like shipping him a gun for his planned suicide. But, the Govenator is not checking out alone. This plea from Arnold is to put stricter environmental laws in place of cars sold in California. Get to mileage goals faster and have cleaner cars sooner. Seems like a top priority for a broke state. Get broker faster. Plus, break what’s left of the auto business in the U.S. along the way. At least 13 other states want some version of this. You could name them, almost all have huge budget problems too.
So, Obama is saying to the U.S. auto industry you may have to make up to fifty different kinds of each make of car to fit each state’s environmental requirements. Goodbye Detroit. Take all the money Obama gives you and try to make this work.
Here’s the essence. Washington knows best what kind of car you should drive. It’s a start to a long list of things Washington will help you with in the next few years. You aren’t smart enough to decide what is best for you and the nation, Harvard lawyers will decide for you.
My term for this is bailing and nailing. Give the car companies all the money they want, then nail the lid on their coffins by giving them regulations they can’t meet.
Next version of bailing and nailing. Banks. Dick Durbin, the only politician in America who can make Rod Blagojevich look good, has a tidy bill he’s pushing that Obama will sign that will force bankruptcy judges to force banks to regegotiate mortgage terms for those who file bankruptcy. Excuse me, are the banks not on the ropes? Got them on the ropes, kick them in the groin. Force them to take losses they don’t take now. Bailing and nailing.
If you think this country has any chance of reversing the downward spiral we are in just think hard about these two plans. Pandering to every special interest group on every issue geta you this. There is no chanage here, President Obama. It’s business as usual.
I’ve said all along every gift we give the Gorists, we take from the working man. The working man needs to wake up and smell the coffee. The Democratic party is the party of the environmentalists and their interests take precedence over those of the blue collar worker.
The moribund, sleeping, near dead Republican Party is too shocked from the last election to think. How in the world did they lose the election to Obama when they ran a moderate Democrat who looked like a ghost and spoke like a George W. Bush. Amazing.
Bill – congrats on the one year anniversary of your blog.
You wrote: <<At least 13 other states want some version of this. You could name them, almost all have huge budget problems too. So, Obama is saying to the U.S. auto industry you may have to make up to fifty different kinds of each make of car to fit each state’s environmental requirements. Goodbye Detroit. Take all the money Obama gives you and try to make this work. Here’s the essence. Washington knows best what kind of car you should drive.>>
The 13 states that are trying to join California in choosing higher standards are choosing the same high standards that California is choosing…. so it is misleading to suggest that car companies will need to make 50 (or even 14) different versions of cars. Of course, these high standards will be required of any automaker that wants to sell, not just the Detroit automakers. I have a solution for Detroit… make 1 version of a particular car that can be sold nationwide. Choose high standards not the lowest common denominator.
Washington is not telling the American people what kinds of cars they should have; Washington (or Sacramento for Californians) is simply reflecting the aspirations of it’s citizens by imposing standards that are supposed to lead to goals that a majority of Americans think are worthy. The Governor of California was elected (twice) by large margins of the voters of that state and those voters knew what they were voting for.
No one doubts that seatbelts and other passenger restraint systems have added to the cost of a car in the US. But the American people, through pressure on their elected representatives, decided that the higher cost of the car was worth the benefit of lower passenger injuries and deaths. Higher standards for fuel efficiency have been (or are being) imposed because the people wanted them.
A majority of Americans feel that higher fuel efficiency standards will lead to many benefits; lowering our dependence on imported oil, continuing to clean up our air and lowering greenhouse gas emissions among them. These are the things that President Obama campaigned on. The majority of voters agreed with him.
Hi Chris:
I’ve missed your comments.
The other 12 states do not have the same standards California has.
I don’t want to live in a country where the government designs one car and everyone drives that car.
A recent poll of US citizes showed global warmning ranked 18th on their list of concerns.
When enough people are out of work and the costs of global warming regulations play a big factor in that it will drop even further.
In tough times warm and fuzzy drops back and essential take over.
We will get there but it will take more time and more pain to do it.
Bill.