Toyota, BMW, Hyundai Workers' Senators Oppose Rescue

11/17/08 | Alison Fitzgerald and Jonathan D. Salant

[TigerLikesRooster]

Toyota, BMW, Hyundai Workers' Senators Oppose Rescue

[TigerLikesRooster]

Ping!

[BGHater]

Duh. It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s against some of our trade agreements.

[ari-freedom]

why do the right thing when you can make a crappy car and still get bailed out

[JamesP81]

I don't think GM's chief problem is crappy product. They make some decent vehicles, especially 1/2 ton and 3/4 ton trucks. GM's problem is legacy costs and unreasonable union contracts they should've never agreed to.

No bailout. A bailout to the Big 3 isn't a bailout to the car maker, it's a bailout to the union. I say let em twist in the wind.

[Qwackertoo]

Let the Big 3 Eat Dirt if they have to. No more bailouts.

Period.

[FrankR]

"The UAW gave 99 percent of its $1.8 million in campaign donations to Democrats in this year's election."

We should all contact Republican Senators Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions of Alabama, and James DeMint of South Carolina with encouragement and thanks for standing up against the bailout for the "big three"...and "cc" your own Congresscritters, no matter which party they are in.

Just say "NO" to automotive bailout. If they are failing, let them fail. The unions picked the party they wanted to support, and I say NO to using any of my money to support them when they fall backwards. THey should have kept the 1.8 million they gave the democrats.

Cockroaches all, feeding furiously until the lights come on, then, they scurry for cover.

[norraad]

Let'um twist in the wind like the crown used to hang pirates at the entrance to the harbor.

Some bygone traditions will come back if we pray.

Btw- they do make crap, crap compared to what they could make for just a few cents more here and a few cents more there.

Shame on them, read the book Car by Mary Walton.

She shows how even lives were lost by this penny pinchin' practice.

Shame, shame, get some rope, I'll find a tree.

[Vigilanteman]

Toyota's wage costs to the company average $48 per hour; GM's average $73. These are U.S. rates in today's Pittsburgh Tribune Review Ralph Reiland column.

The Toyota worker may live in Kentucky or Tennessee where taxes are nowhere near as high as Michigan, but I doubt that the cost of living justifies the extra $25 per hour which the rest of us are supposed to chip in for the GM worker.

When are Oba Mao, George Soros, Warren Buffet and all the other rich liberals going to chip in to bring my wages up to at least Toyota standards?

[pnh102]

Good. Hopefully these vastly superior car companies can kill the UAW bailout.

[Sybeck1]

Hopefully Wicker and Cochran can remember Nissan in Canton MS, and the new Toyota plant going in at Tupelo MS.......

[Skid Marx]

One of the things parties do is deliver to their supporters. The UAW hit the streets for the dems big time this election cycle, and expect consideration in return. I can imagine that they'd be wiped out if the 'Big Three' reorganized. Keep close track of who votes for what in the next year or so. Act accordingly.

[L.McCullen]

All these companies are proving how you can make good quality cars without having to go bankrupt.... and they’re doing it in the Big 3’s backyard everyday and more importantly, without the unions.

Toyota, Honda, Kia, Hyundai, Nissan, Mercedes, and BMW are all examples of how to make cars for profitable companies without the anchor of unions dragging them down.

[Jim Hill]

Don’t forget Volkswagen.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7508625.stm

[Hawthorn]

> Hopefully Wicker and Cochran can remember Nissan in Canton MS, and the new Toyota plant going in at Tupelo MS <

You absolutely don't need to worry about it. Even if they weren't already conservative enough, Wicker and Cochran were both born in Pontotoc County -- one of the three counties involved with the new Toyota plant!

(The plant is located where Union, Pontotoc and Lee Counties come together.)

[RckyRaCoCo]

Realistic "CHANGE we can believe in"

50% cut in wages, pension, health care, no CEO bonuses for 6-12 months, then we'll see where they're at.

No "no consequences for bad decisions" bail-out. None.

Bankruptcy, meaning throw out all contracts, renegotiate wages, benefits. New business model which includes scaling down models, overhead, cut costs to the bone.

Welcome to the party, pal.

[org.whodat]

Is that why they had to recall all those trucks for the tailgate falling off. But it is not only a GM problem, my ford hinge broke as well.

[ari-freedom]

their cars sell well in europe but they can’t sell them here because of the CAFE regulations.
If the goal is to encourage fuel efficiency (a worthy goal to reduce dependency on foreign oil), then the best way to achieve this is by giving a tax break to car companies if they sell more fuel efficient cars.

[DemonDeac]

“I don’t think GM’s chief problem is crappy product. They make some decent vehicles, especially 1/2 ton and 3/4 ton trucks. GM’s problem is legacy costs and unreasonable union contracts they should’ve never agreed to.”

The biggest problem isn’t a crappy product today, though they are far from class leading in most segments. The problem is decades of crap. Bad cars in the past, in particular during the 70s and 80s, are what allowed the Japanese to take over many key segments. The people who switched are now happy and it’ll be hard to win them back.

[Senator_Blutarski]

The biggest problem with a bailout is that there is no reason to think it will fix anything. If we dole out $25B now the car companies will be back in 6 months looking for the next installment.

The proposed financial help will do nothing but briefly postpone the inevitable. GM and Ford are burning through cash at an incredible rate. The weak economy and reduced demand only makes it worse.

The bailout is pure political pork.