Seven Lessons of the Cash for Clunkers Debacle

Washington Examiner ^ | 08/28/2009 | Irwin Seltzer

[fiscon1]

It's over, finished, done. And quiet returns to the auto showrooms of America. Cash-for-Clunkers has outlived its funding. But left us with a host of useful lessons.

First, government forecasters are really bad at their job. The program was originally funded with $1 billion of taxpayer money to cover rebates of $3,500-$4,500 on cars traded in for more fuel-efficient models, and the money was expected to last for about six months. It lasted for one week.

[evad]

It proved the governments complete ineptitude in running anything...once again.

Bring on O-bo-Care

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“Third, Cash-for-Clunkers proved that if you give people $4,500 to buy a durable good...”

...it proves that they are wh*res and the Government now knows at what price they can be bought off with other peoples money!

Why not offer each of us $4,500.00 in ‘free’ health care? You’d have lots of takers on that! *SNORT* Idiots.

[Venturer]

It was a reward for those people who drove big gas burning cars.

The poor guy that has been driving his old Corrolla or Civic around for the last few years, saving gas and putting 200,000 miles on it didnt get squat.

[nascarnation]

The money quote (fwiw it should read billion instead of trillion)

Sixth, unionization matters. Cash-for-Clunkers added $3 trillion to the billions of taxpayer money expended to save General Motors and Chrysler, i.e., members of the United Auto Workers. What a like sum might have done for furniture makers, or the hotel industry, or small businesses, was never even considered.

[Mr_Moonlight]

By mandating the destruction of trade-ins (~~SNIP~~) And by ordering that a trade-in's engine be destroyed by replacing its engine oil with a sodium silicate solution

This is the real rue of this wholly misguided CFC program, the unnecessary destruction of perfectly useful secondary market vehicles, just for the guise of 'saving the planet' or 'stimulating the auto industry' or whatever silly moniker they put on it.

That video of the BMW engine purposely being 'melted down' was one of the saddest things that I've ever viewed

[kiltie65]

Just want to say, cash for clunkers will reach a trillion dollars when the govt is thru. My girlfriend, over 65, works 6 months a year for the IRS in Fresno doing taxpayer returns. They have called her (and who knows how many others...haven’t heard any news reports on it) to report for work on Monday to handle cash for clunkers rebates to dealerships.

[Paul R.]

Does anyone have a list of who voted for this nonsense, or where I can easily link to such??

Thanks.