Thursday, February 26, 2009

Obama 2010 Budget Pledges Billions in Aid to Auto Industry

Oh thank God. This is the best news that Michigan, and the nation, could receive right now.

The 2010 budget plan outlined Thursday by the Obama administration pledges a $150 billion, 10-year commitment to seeking more energy independence, including research and funding for attempts to boost auto fuel efficiency.


Wonderful. Keeping them in business in the first place is paramount though, and that's where this next passage comes in.

The administration's top budget official also said that a $250 billion "placeholder" set aside for new efforts to shore up banks could provide money for additional aid to the auto industry.

"We don't know exactly what, if anything, will be required, whether in the financial industry or in subsectors." said Peter Orszag, the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget.


Coming on the heels of the news that GM lost $30 billion last year and is coming close to a determination on whether or not it can still be considered a "going concern" (translation: bankrupt) - well, we might just save the country from tipping into a full-blown depression if we can get this through. And tieing it to the bank money is just wicked smart. Although one in four are against aid to the auto industry at this point, the other three don't realize how many jobs are affected if we let them fail. Heck, even Michigan Republicans are on their way to DC to lobby for more $$ for auto parts suppliers - which is where the bulk of the job loss would occur with a Big Three failure.

So, let's do this and save the nation. As an added bonus, we get to piss off Bob Corker and Richard Shelby. I'd gladly incur more debt to do that.