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November 2008
- GM Needs a Hand From Unions, Lenders
  
  Bloomberg | Nov 24, 08 9:43 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - General Motors is revving up its efforts to prove to Congress it can survive if it receives a multibillion-dollar federal loan, reports Bloomberg. The automaker is asking unions to ease work rules, attempting to reduce its debt load, and considering cutting brands from its lineup as it tries to stretch its remaining cash. The company has a week to present a plan to lawmakers. More »
- Bill Ford Driving a Green Future
  
  New York Times | Nov 24, 08 8:35 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - While General Motors, Chrysler, and Congress are haggling over what strings to tie to a federal bailout, Ford chairman Bill Ford Jr is working behind the scenes to further his company's move toward greener, more fuel-efficient vehicles. The automaker, with enough cash on hand to get through 2009, isn’t in the dire straits its rivals are, reports the Wall Street Journal , and has steadily been moving toward an energy partnership with the government. More »
- Detroit Should Look at the History of Steel
  
  New York Times | Nov 23, 08 2:09 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - When the steel industry was floundering, many people thought the worst possible outcome would be to allow the big, old companies to go bankrupt. But it took that failure to pare down the industry to a workable size and inject new life into it, David Streitfeld writes in the New York Times. Could the same be true of the auto industry? More »
- GM Shrinks Fleet of Corporate Jets
  
  Detroit News | Nov 21, 08 1:38 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - After facing turbulence on Capitol Hill over its corporate jets, General Motors is cutting two aircraft from the ranks, the Detroit News reports. “This is strictly the result of drastic cutbacks in travel around the globe,” said a spokesman. The automaker, which began this year with seven jets, also turned in two in September. GM spent $256,793 on flight costs for its top execs last year. More »
- Bailout Wait 'Nerve-Wracking'
  
  Detroit News | Nov 21, 08 1:50 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Two grueling days of congressional hearings on a bailout for the auto industry were "hostile" and the wait for an answer is "nerve-wracking," General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner told the Detroit News yesterday. GM is ready now to show Congress detailed restructuring plans to convince lawmakers to hand over billions in aid. Legislators are requiring plans from each of the Big Three automakers before they'll agree to a rescue package. More »
- Hey, Mitt, Your Naked Opportunism Is Showing
  
  Boston Globe | Nov 20, 08 3:43 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Mitt Romney is speaking sideways when he talks about Detroit these days, Joan Vennochi writes in the Boston Globe . The man who promised he would “not rest until Michigan is back” in the Republican primary is now urging bankruptcy for Detroit automakers. “If the auto industry could reinvent itself as quickly as Mitt Romney,” Vennochi writes, “it wouldn't need a bailout.” More »
- Congress to Big 3: Ball's in Your Court
  
  Detroit News | Nov 20, 08 3:05 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - After failing to strike a deal today on a possible bailout for the Big Three automakers, Congressional leaders offered the firms one more chance to push for the $25 billion lifeline they've requested, the Detroit News reports. Lawmakers will wait until December and require concrete plans for the money before proceeding. “The best way to proceed is to give them another opportunity to make their case,” Harry Reid said. More »
- Big Three Worse Than Somali Pirates
  
  Bloomberg | Nov 20, 08 1:37 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Detroit’s pleas for a bailout sound an awful lot like blackmail to Bloomberg’s Mark Gilbert. Let GM fail, CEO Rick Wagoner told Congress, and the “level of economic devastation would far exceed” what Detroit is asking for. In other words, give us what we want, or the economy gets it. “Even Somali oil-tanker pirates have so far stopped short of trying to pilfer $25 billion from their victims,” Gilbert writes. More »
- Auto Execs Hit Turbulence Over Private Jets
  
  Washington Post | Nov 20, 08 7:49 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Take three auto execs, add the private jets each took to a Capitol Hill hearing to beg for a federal bailout, and you get a recipe for the heaping helping of humble pie legislators served up, writes Dana Milbank in the Washington Post. "There's a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying into Washington, DC, and people coming off them with tin cups in their hands," said one New York congressman at the disastrous hearing. More »
- Political Deadlock Dims Chances of Aid for Detroit
  
  Bloomberg | Nov 19, 08 7:07 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The CEOs of Detroit's Big Three automakers left Capitol Hill today with bleak prospects of getting $25 billion in emergency loans, Bloomberg reports. Negotiations continue, especially among lawmakers of automotive states, but Republicans and Democrats are deadlocked over where any such aid should come from. Senate leader Harry Reid canceled a vote on the issue scheduled for tomorrow. More »
- Romney: Let Detroit Go Bust
  
  New York Times | Nov 19, 08 7:26 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - If you want to maintain an automotive industry in the US, writes Mitt Romney, giving the Big Three a bailout is the last thing you should do. In an op-ed for the New York Times , the former Massachusetts governor (and Michigan native) says that GM, Chrysler, and Ford need a managed bankruptcy followed by radical restructuring. A bailout will only encourage the industry's worst excesses, and in a few years "you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye." More »
- Detroit's Big 3 Plead Their Case in Washington
  
  New York Times | Nov 18, 08 5:17 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The CEOs of the Big Three automakers told the Senate today that a $25 billion bailout of the industry is necessary to prevent "catastrophic" effects on the economy, the New York Times reports. “If the domestic industry were allowed to fail,” said GM's Rick Wagoner, it would mean “three million jobs lost within the first year.” Meanwhile, Chrysler's Robert Nardelli disclosed that his company, like GM, is on the verge of bankruptcy. More »
- Debunking 6 Myths About Detroit Carmakers
  
  Detroit Free Press | Nov 18, 08 2:45 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Misconceptions and half-truths abound in the discussion over giving Detroit’s big three carmakers a chunk of federal bailout cash. Mark Phelan, in the Free Press , clears up six myths: Nobody buys GM, Ford or Chrysler anymore. Fact: The three combined sold 8.5 million vehicles domestically last year—GM alone beat Toyota’s sales by 1.2 million. Their cars are unreliable. Fact: Consumer-advocacy groups now rate cars from the Big Three as equally dependable as those from Japanese or European brands. More »
- Ford Sells 20% Stake in Mazda to Raise Cash
  
  Associated Press | Nov 18, 08 8:40 AM CST
  
  (AP) - Ford is slashing its stake in Mazda by nearly two-thirds, joining other struggling US automakers in a fire-sale of prized assets to stay afloat. Ford, which owns 33.4% of Mazda, will sell about a 20% stake, the companies said. The sale would net Ford $540 million based on Mazda's closing price today, barely a quarter of what it would have been worth a year ago. More »
- Detroit Bailout Is Key Opportunity for US Economy
  
  Washington Post | Nov 17, 08 12:58 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Letting one—or more—of the Big Three automakers slip into bankruptcy could push the US economy into depression and would imperil millions of jobs tied to the industry, writes Jeffrey D. Sachs in the Washington Post . Instead, the government should bail out the industry, taking the lead in positioning it as a high-tech leader producing 100-mile-per-gallon vehicles. More »
- Let Detroit Go Bankrupt: Brooks, Krauthammer
  
  New York Times | Nov 14, 08 12:31 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - American prosperity relies on creative destruction—the failure of nonviable companies and their replacement by defter rivals. The government endeavors to protect the worker in periods of transition, writes David Brooks in the New York Times , but not the firms themselves. That’s why the auto-industry bailout is a bad idea: Extending the life of the Big Three means preserving their unworkable business models. More »
- Detroit Needs Green Deal or No Deal
  
  Salon | Nov 12, 08 9:01 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - If we’re going to bail out the auto industry, writes Joseph Romm in Salon, let’s do it right. Detroit’s Big Three have spent years fighting tooth and nail against the very innovations that could save them: higher fuel efficiency and hybrid-electric cars. Detroit has “been suicidally lobbying against its own inescapable future,” as well as against everyone’s shared interest in cars running on clean and renewable energy. More »
- Dems Push Paulson to Fund Big 3 Automakers
  
  Politico | Nov 8, 08 4:56 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Congressional Democrats are urging Henry Paulson to pump funds into the sputtering Big Three automakers, Politico reports. In a letter to the treasury secretary, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid called for a broadening of the $700 billion bailout package to help GM, Ford, and Chrysler qualify for federal aid. A thriving auto industry is vital to restoring market stability, the Dems said. More »
- Ford Loses $2.98B, Cuts Jobs
  
  Bloomberg | Nov 7, 08 7:41 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Ford Motor Company’s sales plunged 22% in the third quarter, the company said today, as the struggling economy eviscerated demand. The company lost $2.98 billion, or $1.31 a share, far worse than the 93 cents-per-share analysts expected, while burning through $7.7 billion in cash, Bloomberg reports. Another round of job cuts is on the way, the company says, including a 10% reduction of its salaried-personnel costs. More »
- And on the Seventh Day, They Stop Selling Cars
  
  Wall Street Journal | Nov 6, 08 9:46 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - With the American auto industry in dire straits, you might think dealers would be working 24/7 to move merchandise. But in 14 states and scattered counties elsewhere, Sunday sales are against the law—and many dealership owners like it that way. The Wall Street Journal visits Rhode Island to look at both sides of a surprisingly contentious issue. More »