Conservatives spend a lot of time belly-aching about “patriotism.” (Actually, they’ve been pretty effective at it and have pretty much owned the word. More work for liberals to do…) But what counts as patriotic is not that simple, especially in a globalized economic age. The bailouts of the auto industry being managed by the Obama […]
Obviously this economic meltdown of the last couple of years is complex. But if pressed to give a one-sentence answer, I would say this: For almost thirty years the financial sector got whatever it wanted. Certain conditions had to be place to make this possible: the widely held idea that markets and business people can […]
There’s a lot to chew on in the discussion over at the New York Times “Does the U.S. need an auto industry?“ I was struck by a couple of passages. This from Roger Simmermaker, a union official: We need a U.S. auto industry because American companies employ more American workers; support more retirees, their families […]
A great discussion taking place over at the New York Times. Economist Mark Thoma says: But there is another rationale for policies preserving certain kinds of production: protecting industries vital to national defense. If you are an island nation vulnerable to blockades or trade embargoes intended to prevent food and other goods from being imported, […]
I’m afraid that I can’t get behind the Obama administration and some Michigan politicians who blame a group of hedge funds for pushing Chrysler into bankruptcy court. The Obama administration desperately wanted to keep Chrysler out of bankruptcy. It secured agreements from just about everybody (management, the union, banks that are major creditors – who, […]
A sad day. Both I and my wife have many connections to Chrysler, Detroit, Michigan, and many other places supported, in part, by Chrysler. Many friends, acquaintances, and family members will get hit hard. The Detroit News has a quick summary of the impact of the bankruptcy filing designed to save the company: The Obama […]
Jeez, I’ve been linking to the Wall Street Journal a lot lately, but they’re the only ones reporting right now that the Chinese automaker Geely is apparently going to try to buy the Volvo brand from Ford. I am confident that Chinese automakers will eventually become a major force in the auto industry – even […]
Dean Baker has a great piece over at TPMCafe connecting the (so far nonexistent) auto industry bailout to the economies of the Great Lakes States. He only mentions Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana, but Illinois, Wisconsin, etc. are not immune.
And I don’t mean the famous political strategy of Kevin Phillips. No, I’m talking about overseas automakers. One reason Detroit’s automakers have had such trouble with their bailout is they have an opposing constituency among southern politicians. It’s something the Wall Street Journal wrote about today. Overseas automakers have mostly invested in southern states, largely […]
Following up on my previous post regarding the possibility of a Detroit bailout, here are a few interesting links I’ve run across. First, on the UAW. In my post I mentioned that yes, indeed, Detroit’s labor costs are higher. Here’s another way to look at it from Felix Salmon: You might expect it from right-leaning […]
Bill Poorman 