Monday, March 30, 2009

Who Drives What at Obama Motors.

They've been assigned to save the American Automobile Industry. It's time to meet the heroes of Obama Motors and the cars they drive:

  • Steve Rattner, the "Car Czar", hedge-fund manager, specialist in media mergers and alumnus of the Council for Foreign Relations. Drives a Lexus, an Audi, and slums it with a Lincoln Town Car.
  • Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner drives an Acura.
  • Larry Summers, White House Economic Adviser, is a Mazda Man.
  • OMB Head Peter Orzag loves his Honda.
  • Carbon-hating Carol Browner doesn't own a car, nor does Energy Secretary Stephen Chu.
  • EPA Chief Lisa Jackson raves about her Prius and her Honda minivan!
Not a Real American Car Guy ("guy" in the generic sense) among them. God help GM and Chrysler.
Obama Motors.

The Obama Car Team is forcing the ouster of GM's CEO Rick Wagoner, and probably most of the board of directors of the corporation. Apparently "change" at GM is not happening fast enough, namely the shafting of GM share and debtholders by massive equity dilution and forced bond conversion, and the building of "Smart"-style toy cars that bureaucrats love. The Administration is also dictating that Fiat shall own Chrysler. So much for corporate governance.

It's not clear how introducing this chaos into GM's management will help them to meet the sixty-day deadline to complete their restructuring, the criteria of which seems only to be known to the Administration.