Obama: I'll meet with Detroit automakers immediately

[Faygo Kid]

Source: Detroit News

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said Thursday he would immediately meet with the heads of Detroit's automakers and union once he takes office, telling NBC News, "We do need American cars."

Obama's comments came in an interview with anchor Brian Williams to air later Thursday on NBC's "Nightly News."

"My hope is if I'm elected, that I'm immediately meeting with heads of the Big Three automakers, as well with the United Auto Workers," Obama told Williams. "And to sit down and craft a strategy that puts us on a path for an auto industry that can compete with anybody in the world."

Obama's statement comes as Michigan political and business leaders push for new federal aid to the ailing automakers, perhaps in the form of assistance to General Motors Corp. and Chrysler as they consider a merger.

Read more: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081030/AUTO01/810300463

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This is going to be like FDR's Hundred Days.

Obama is going to hit the ground running, and I for one look forward to his trying to salvage what George W. Bush destroyed in the past eight years.

P.S. As a native Detroiter, I welcome this. Love this quote:

"I think we do need American cars," Obama answered. "We started the auto industry. We revolutionized the auto industry again and again and again. And it built our middle class. It was the core of our manufacturing base for decades. The notion that we can't compete in an industry that we created I think is you know, unacceptable."

[ingac70]

1. No amount of government money in the world...

will get the heads out of the asses of top management in the American auto industry.

[MichiganVote]

2. We'll get rid of them the same way we're getting rid of the other bastards.

[noonwitch]

21. An exclusive government contract for fuel-efficient vehicles might help

If the federal government promised an exclusive contract to whichever US company (not foreign car makers can be eligible) comes up with the most fuel-efficient vehicle or the most reliable vehicle with a gasoline-free fuel could be a good motivator.

[sarcasmo]

3. Kick, we need help here in Michigan,.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

4. we need cars made in America

we don't need GM, Chrysler and Ford - they have earned their oblivion.

[ingac70]

6. American company....

profits apply to our GDP. Buying foreign cars made here still sends most of our money overseas.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

12. doesn't matter

The foreign automakers are investing more in America than anywhere else and far more than the "american" automakers are,

GDP is an obsolete metric

[ingac70]

14. It does matter...

the profit goes overseas, plus everybody gets tax huge tax breaks that US manufacturers don't get when the produce here. We'll need Obama and that 60 Sen. majority to stop that shit.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

17. and it doesn't matter

US corporations repatriate far more revenue from their subsidiaries than foreign owned companies in the United States do - and in the case of the auto industry foreign companies are making significant investments that the "american" auto industry isn't making in the United States.

Foreign companies investing in the United States is a GOOD thing and we need the foreign investment because American companies won't invest in America themselves.

[w4rma]

5. Good. (nt)

[roguevalley]

7. I love you, Barack Obama. You are my new hero. Thank you for

being smart, having vision and caring.

[flpab]

9. the Big three

My husband is a member of a union, we believe in union made products. He was impressed when my shirt came from the Obama HQ and was made in the USA and Union made!!!!

We go to Europe a lot, retired military and we have seen the coolest cars made by Ford there for years. I have to say I have a German Union made car imported by Penske auto group (SMART) but drive 80 miles a day and needed a fuel economy car that was fun. I would have bought any of those small ford cars that you see in Europe getting 50 plus miles. We have a Ford van, ford escort with 160,000 miles, 73 mustang, my husband's first car and have always bought american made. I just loved the smart and bought it because I wanted more mpg. I know that these cars can be made here and people would buy them.

[blue_onyx]

11. It seems every time I see a cool GM or Ford...

it's for the European market. The new Chevy Cruze, for example, goes to Europe first. I think it will be an extra year or two before we get it. The European Ford's I've seen are nice too. I can't see way it's so hard to just bring these vehicles here.

[ingac70]

15. It isn't hard to get them here (or make them here)...

the oil companies don't want them here, and the Big Three oblige.

[madrchsod]

8. skylarks are cool....

it is one of the nicest designed cars in the 50`s

i`m glad barack understands that we need a auto industry that keeps the profits in the usa

[blue_onyx]

10. I hope he does

He's a very smart man and I think he could be a tremendous help to the auto companies and Michigan. We are probably going to go from a bad recession to a depression if GM/Chrysler do merge. I hope they don't focus on just the auto companies because the people will need assistance too.

[ryanmuegge]

13. He's got to win first.

[goforit]

16. Tell them to go green with Americans here to work for them.

[ryanmuegge]

19. I would be very surprised to see the big companies reverse the course of their

long-term plan for Asian investment. I don't see any paradigmatic shift happening, but who knows?

[DeepModem Mom]

18. K&R

[JNelson6563]

20. Finally!

Won't it be great to have a President who cares about this stuff? Thankfully our incoming President cares a great deal more for we who have been so hard hit for so long by the Rethug policies. I see by reading the replies we have plenty of DUers who do not give a single shit about the Michiganders who are suffering so badly.

Of course come election night we, who are generally left to gnaw on our shit sandwich in isolation, will be fully expected to deliver our 17 electoral votes to the blue column but other than that ya might as well just lop the mitten off, who cares? Right?

Julie--with a mighty "fuck you" to the oblivious among us

[Azlady]

22. K & R

[AzDar]

23. B.O. has all the right moves.

GObama!

[blues90]

24. Oh come on get real!

For decades the american auto manufacturers willfully built and sold enormous gas hogs and did not give one shit about pollution or milage just sales and convincing people that they needed crap like this . In the late 70's they were all on the bandwagen promoting small efficient cars then suddenly whent right back to the V8 hogs and power cars and built them with parts from everywhere other than the USA.

Now they ask for help when they layed off workers of 30 years and did not care and sold crap and did not care.

I don't care what anyone says I worked in this field for over 33 years and know what they did and why.

Now we should help them out and Obama says , that's complete bullshit. Lets bail out every corporation who for decades has been screwing the public or rather in their terms the consumer. Why not it's the same thing.

How are they suddenly to be trusted and why should they be trusted. They knew long ago they could have been far ahead with better cars and then the cheap route.

So I suppose the next thing we will hear is that these new jobs will be living wage jobs, give me a break.

When the big three knew years ago they were on the wrong path and had the funds to re-tool they made no attempt to do so. Now we should help them the criminals they are.

And another thing , all these cars that are new but are not efficent with the payment books sitting there , what happens to those are the big three going to buy them back?

Who the hell can even afford one of their new re-tooled cars with some min wage or no job at all?

None of this makes any sense to me , what are we talking here the year 2054.

It's the workers I feel for not the auto corporations , not one tiny bit. Fuck them.