(2008-11-10) — With bailout talk swirling around GM and Ford, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi today offered some much-needed help to the U.S. auto industry during a news conference on Capitol Hill.
“Here’s my proposal to rescue U.S. automakers,” said Rep. Pelosi. “Memo to Detroit: Make better cars.”
The California Democrat said problems at Ford and GM weren’t caused by the recent financial meltdown, rather they represent “a long-term chronic condition aggravated by a combination of low value-to-price ratios, high labor costs driven by big unions and oppressive government regulation, and the failure of executives to offer a compelling vision to employees and customers alike.”
“In other words,” she said, “you’re making too many expensive cars that no one wants. You’d almost think there was a conspiracy of mediocrity…like someone in the ivory tower said, ‘Let’s strive, in every market segment, to produce the third-best vehicle.’ You executives seem more interested in the size of your offices and of your golden parachutes than you are in the couple who will walk into a dealership in Des Moines today, trying to find a vehicle that meets their needs, fits their budget, and gives them a little thrill because it’s designed well.”
The Pelosi rescue plan is not limited to company executives, it also includes help for struggling autoworkers.
“You autoworkers think your big union bosses have your best interests at heart,” she said, “and so you march in lockstep to the polls where you vote for union-backed political candidates whose campaigns you funded through your union dues. Those politicians, many of them lawyers, then go to Washington and listen to the siren song of union lobbyists to increase the regulatory burden on U.S. automakers, driving up the cost of production so it’s tougher for your company to compete with foreign car makers.”
“Meanwhile, back in Detroit,” Rep. Pelosi said, “your union negotiators threaten your own companies with economic disaster to get contracts that ignore market forces, and treat the average worker like an ignorant baby who needs lifelong coddling, rather than as a resourceful man or woman who just wants an opportunity to earn what his skill, creativity and hard work deserve. The next time your shop steward brags that the union really stuck it to management to get this new contract, you should punch him in the nose. Then remind him that labor and management both draw their paychecks from the same source.”
Rep. Pelosi said the automakers and their unions “need to stop acting like little socialist countries, and start behaving like businesses again. It’s time to unleash the desire to be part of something great which lies hidden in the hearts of most American workers.”
38 responses so far ↓
1 JamesonLewis3rd // Nov 10, 2008 at 8:03 am
$1.959 per gallon this morning. Whodathunkit?
2 gafisher // Nov 10, 2008 at 8:21 am
Michigan’s Dreamocrats passed a marijuana initiative last Tuesday, Scott, but if you heard Pelosi say all that you’re smokin’ something stronger.
3 gafisher // Nov 10, 2008 at 8:22 am
With Generous Jenny Granholm on the Obama Economic Team better cars are just around the corner.
In India, for example.
4 Hawkeye // Nov 10, 2008 at 8:40 am
Jon Corzine is vying for a spot in the Obama administration… I guess so he can do to the country what he did to New Jersey. God help us all!
5 NeaL // Nov 10, 2008 at 8:42 am
Re: JamesLewis3rd #1
It’s too early to give Obama credit. Do I hear any praise for Bush? We heard plenty of blame for him as the price of gas went up.
What’s so difficult to believe about this Pelosi article is that she sounds like a Reagan-era Republican. It’s tough to swallow.
6 Darthmeister // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:18 am
Bail out for cars? I bet al Gore is torked given that the internal combustion engine is the greatest evil levied against Gaia.
National Holiday Planned For Obama
I mean, what’s this guy actually done at the national level except secretly plan for a “Big Bang” of executive orders to establish his national socialist state?
Heil, der Fuhrer!
7 Darthmeister // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:23 am
Hey, Hawkeye, it’s all in the name of “change.” Obama wants to “change” America into the utopia we have here in the People’s Republik of Illinois. After all, that’s the only real political experience he’s actually had to date.
Maybe ObaMarx will appoint William Jefferson (D-LA) as the Secretary of the Treasury. He’s got a lot of experience with money that really isn’t his.
8 Darthmeister // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:29 am
Betrayal in Iraq
9 onlineanalyst // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:37 am
Oy, Nancy Pelosi giving advice to the auto industry? She was at the head of the biggest train wreck of Congress for the past two years with the lowest approval ratings evah.
Maybe she can figure out how to power cars that run on shredded Democrat documents.
The pity is that too many of the Dems in power come from urban areas, where public transportation is the rule rather than the exception. What do they care about the needs of the rest of America? I guess that Obama (”I don’t care about the suburbs.”) and his buddies want to keep the us all down on the farm.
BTW Christopher Dodd intends to keep his postion as chair of the Senate Banking Committee, where he feels that he “can do the most good.” Is this the Onion? Dodd may have done “the most good” for his own political fortunes and real estate holdings, but he has proven to be a fiscal failure if not a negligent felon.
Isn’t it time to investigate the Fannie/Freddie-CRA-ACORN cabal and its role in the financial meltdown? Maybe Jamie Gorelick can head the hearing. Oh, wait. She and Franklin Raines were prime (Heh!) beneficiaries.
10 JamesonLewis3rd // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:41 am
A-ah-EW-Ga-ah! WARNING: Red Flag: “Pelosi Offers Help”
RE: #6~~
Good point, I guess, but I would never give BO credit unless he deserved it; in fact, to-date, his account with me is in the red and, therefore, conditionally suspended. He has yet to do anything real, anyway, whether positive or negative but, don’t you worry, he’ll give himself plenty of credit by decree as needed. So, as it is, I am fairly confident that my stockpile of credits is safe with him around; whereas, President Bush has a good portion of said credits which, percentage-wise, BO will never achieve (unless he repents).
Helplessly watching the Democrats acting out, portraying themselves so very deftly as hicks and rubes looking for somewhere to scrape their boots, is boggling on way too many levels. Note: Observing their barbaric, pagan superficiality is quite painful and may fry connections between retinas and brains but will prompt prayers.
Thank you
11 Maggie // Nov 10, 2008 at 10:36 am
Pelosi said all that?……….really?
12 onlineanalyst // Nov 10, 2008 at 11:14 am
Amazing isn’t it, Maggie? Maybe Pelosi was conducting a field study for how many words test the limits of nip-and-tuck, Botox therapy.
13 boberinyetagain // Nov 10, 2008 at 11:26 am
Chevy just “happened” to come up with a 100mpg car (the Voltâ„¢ due out in 2010) just as the poop hit the fan? What a coincidence!
Idiots…one and all. Which, by the way, seems to be the criteria for bailouts in the BUSH (let’s not forget, the bailout was his idea, bullied right on through by George) era.
Anyone want to own an insurance company? Either way, you do now…
Obama may have been in favor of this idiotic idea (and he is NOT forgiven) but then so was that “other guy” but neither of them pushed it though…BUSH did…so, whilst ya’ll bemoan the “Socialist agenda” please, please remember to blame the proper party/person.
14 Ms RightWing, Ink // Nov 10, 2008 at 11:32 am
Maggie
Now you know Scott by now, doncha
15 Ms RightWing, Ink // Nov 10, 2008 at 11:40 am
We won’t need no stinkin’ cars after the Big O ends drilling expansion by executive orders. That, along with unleashing groups such as Planned Parenthood upon our school systems.
No wonder that he plans to start stem cell research on day one. Kill the babies from young teenage unwed mothers then ship the fetuses to government labs.
Heil Hitler, er heil Obama. How long before the Deutscher Gruß begins the early morning pledge in the public schools
16 Beerme // Nov 10, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Bush has the POWER! He can push through anything in this Democrat-controlled congress, eh? Yeah, right…
17 boberinyetagain // Nov 10, 2008 at 12:38 pm
This seems as though it was his idea, his administration but it is open to interpretation on some level…I guess??
WASHINGTON (CNN) — U.S. President George W. Bush, saying “our entire economy is in danger,” urged Congress to approve his administration’s $700 billion bailout proposal.
The greatest “socialist” in America’s history, the title is his…not Obama’s…Obama would have to start working now and continue on for some time in order to be considered a close second (or even a remote second)
18 BlackLion31U // Nov 10, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Palin’s interview with the Anchorage Daily News and KTUU Channel 2 at the governor’s Wasilla home:
Q.” Why do you think your campaign lost?”
A. ‘I think the Republican ticket represented too much of the status quo, too much of what had gone on in these last eight years, that Americans were kind of shaking their heads like going, wait a minute, how did we run up a 10 trillion dollar debt in a Republican administration? How have there been blunders with war strategy under a Republican administration? If we’re talking change, we want to get far away from what it was that the present administration represented and that is to a great degree what the Republican Party at the time had been representing. So people desiring change I think went as far from the administration that is presently seated as they could. It’s amazing that we did as well as we did.”
Can’t argue with that Sarah!
19 BlackLion31U // Nov 10, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Would that now make Sarah Palin a “Bush Basher?”
Oh, say it ain’t so, Joe
20 Hawkeye // Nov 10, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Maggie #11,
Yeah, she said all that and her face cracked in a few places during the process. Time for her to go back to the plastic surgeon for a little spackle and paint. (BTW, you were Eleven-teenth!)
21 Hawkeye // Nov 10, 2008 at 2:02 pm
OLA #12,
Ooops! I didn’t realize you beat me to the punch on that one.
22 upnorthlurkin // Nov 10, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Just filled my Ford F150 with regular at $1.899 this morning and I had a coupon for $.04/gal off that amount! Uff da! All hail (or is it heil) Dumbo! Just the threat of windfall profit taxes on big bad oil and the prices fall, fall, fall….
23 Godfrey // Nov 10, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Beerme said “Bush has the POWER! He can push through anything in this Democrat-controlled congress, eh?
Likewise, how great would it be if the Republicans could make themselves palatable to the general (i.e. voting) public again and take over Congress in 2010?
Nothing scares we libertarian types like consolidation of power, and Obama seems to have exactly that. I’d like for Obama to have, beginning in 2010, exactly the amount of legislative power Bush has right now.
24 NeaL // Nov 10, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Re: BlackLion31U #18
As I stated in my blog, I had hoped the Republican Party would be able to redeem themselves for the decision they made, eight years ago. John McCain did not deserve to lose to George W. Bush in the Republican primary, back then. He did not deserve to inherit the legacy of George W. Bush on Election Day.
If this Governor of Alaska is the future of the Republican Party, their future looks bright, indeed. I hope Condoleezza doesn’t stay at Stanford for too long, either. As for the rest of the Republicans, they need to take a page from Sarah Palin’s record in Alaska and start cleaning house.
25 boberinyetagain // Nov 10, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Stupid “freedom”. Looks like George knew how to end the war all along, we’ll be out by December 31st at this rate.
The United States sent Maliki the latest text last week in response to a last-minute Iraqi request for changes to an agreement that had been hammered out over months. U.S. officials have said the text is final and not open to further changes.
The text calls for U.S. forces to leave Iraq by the end of 2011 and to move off the streets of towns and villages by the middle of next year. Iraqi officials have said the final U.S. version includes some but not all of 110 changes they requested.
Who decided to free these people anyway?
Stupid freedom…
26 gafisher // Nov 10, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Darth Re#6: “National Holiday Planned For Obama
I mean, what’s this guy actually done at the national level except secretly plan for a “Big Bang†of executive orders to establish his national socialist state?”
On that day each year every fifth-grade student will receive his or her own personal copy of the little red book “Sayings of Chairman O,” quotes gleaned from his Harvard Law Review articles, from bills he’s authored, that sort of thing. And on the other side of the page …
Once his coterie of Chicago cronies and Beltway insiders is in place it won’t be a “big bang.” Expect something more of the “gang” sort.
27 NeaL // Nov 10, 2008 at 5:42 pm
In Soviet Russia, the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 is celebrated as “Red October.”
In Soviet America, we shall look back upon this election as “Red November.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEtLFJjFQCA&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POkHs4Xwo5M&feature=related
28 mindknumbed kid // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:04 pm
My Forzda B4000 SE 4×4 is over 205K and still going, my Suburban is over 175K and going strong, to my shame neither vehicle has been well maintained, just well driven. The Mazda actually broke 25MPG on a trip one time, best for the Suburban has been 18.6 MPG. I think Detroit makes some quality vehicles and certainly I would like to double or triple my current fuel economy, but both vehicles have proven themselves in collisions with Deer, and my Suburban seats 9 adults and tows a trailer. Gas is down to 1.679 @ Flying J today, maybe we can afford to go somewhere soon! Maybe it is time to take the travel trailer out to the lake for a weekend…
29 mindknumbed kid // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:10 pm
You do have to wonder about the ballots turning up in Minnesota, every last one a vote for the guy who finished in second place. Now isn’t that a coincidence? Gullible must be written on our foreheads!
30 mindknumbed kid // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:33 pm
Here is the potion of scripture my mind went to the day after the election.
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=11&chapter=12&version=9&context=chapter
I really don’t care for a president that is the same age as I am, in 15 or 20 years maybe, but I just don’t think we have been around long enough to have gained sufficient wisdom for such a position.
31 mindknumbed kid // Nov 10, 2008 at 9:38 pm
But then there is also this to consider…
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%2022:1-2;&version=9;
32 Godfrey // Nov 11, 2008 at 12:28 am
Mindknumbed: Josiah was an interesting guy, although presumably he had the help of a regent. But there’s also that other guy, Jesus, to consider; legend pegs him at 30ish when he made his mark on the world.
Not sure age has much to do with it.
33 gafisher // Nov 11, 2008 at 5:47 am
Godfrey, Jesus made a pretty significant showing even at the age of 12 (Luke 2:46-47) but, setting aside for the moment that Jesus was the real Messiah, what we have in Josiah and Jesus is a pattern of wisdom which begins at an early age, not proof that lack of age or experience guarantees wisdom.
Would Obama exemplify Post hoc ergo TelePrompTer hoc?
34 mindknumbed kid // Nov 15, 2008 at 4:59 pm
Please do not compare apples to oranges.
35 mindknumbed kid // Nov 15, 2008 at 5:04 pm
I said, Days should speak, and multitude of years should teach wisdom.
But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.
36 More on the Detriot Bailout // Nov 17, 2008 at 3:27 pm
[...] Pelosi Offers Help to Big Auto: ‘Make Better Cars’ via The Volokh Conspiracy - “Memo to Detroit: Make better cars”:. Read the first post [...]
37 Commentary » Blog Archive » Flotsam and Jetsam // Nov 19, 2008 at 9:25 am
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[...] their needs, fits their budget, and gives them a little thrill because it’s designed well.†1 Pelosi Offers Help to Big Auto: ‘Make Better Cars’ by Scott Ott for ScrappleFace (2008-11-10 [back] [...]
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