4
POPS Ford Beats Government Motors AP story: "Ford Reports Surprise $1 Billion Profit. Automaker now expects to be solidly profitable in 2011." But then you get halfway down the story: "But Ford still faces obstacles in its turnaround. Last week workers overwhelmingly rejected an agreement with the United Auto Workers that would have brought Ford's labor costs in line with rivals General Motors and Chrysler. Workers objected to clauses limiting their right to strike and freezing entry-level wages and felt the company was healthy enough and didn't need further concessions." So this headline, "Ford Reports Surprise $1 Billion Profit" needs to be rewritten: "Ford Surprises by Having a Profit. Angry unions vow to redouble efforts to sink the automaker."
5
POPSFile 87 Obama's Socialist Appointees-Where is the Spotlight? 
Our goal as socialists is to abolish private ownership of the means of production. Our immediate task is to limit the capitalist class’s prerogatives in the workplace... In the short run we must at least minimize the degree of exploitation of workers by capitalists. We can accomplish this by promoting full employment policies, passing local living wage laws, but most of all by increasing the union movement’s power... DSA has some cross membership with the Communist Party and considerable cross-membership with the the equally militant Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism. DSA has close ties to many Congressman, including John Conyers, Danny Davis, Jan Schakowsky (all close Obama supporters) Jerrold Nadler and Bob Filner. DSA has key personnel or allies at the top of AFL-CIO, SEIU, United Auto Workers, United Steelworkers of America and other major unions. DSA has considerable influence in ACORN, Working Families Party, Green Party, Democratic Party . . .
2
POPSWho Killed Detroit? "Are we better off now that these things are made by foreigners? Are we better off now that we have ceased to be self-sufficient? Are we better off now that the real wages of our workers and median income of our families no longer grow as they once did? Are we better off now that manufacturing, for the first time in U.S. history, employs fewer workers than government? We no longer build commercial ships. We have but one airplane company, and it outsources. China produces our computers. And if GM goes Chapter 11, America will soon be out of the auto business. Our politicians and pundits may not understand what is going on. Historians will have no problem explaining the decline and fall of the Americans."
3
POPSSorry Snobs: Townhall Rage IS Real Democracy Then, public opinion intervened. Obama is now on the wrong side of a genuine grass-roots revolt by people who feel ignored by everyone who is supposed to be representing them. Consider the AARP. It has all but endorsed a plan to slash several hundred billion dollars over 10 years from Medicare. It is providing cover for the creation of a new system that, if it ever succeeds in "bending the cost curve," will have to scrimp on expensive end-of-life care. The AARP is overwhelmingly favorable to a plan opposed by the elderly more than any other age group. Who is the more authentic voice of seniors -- the AARP playing along with its Democratic allies, or the elderly at town-hall meetings wondering what the Medicare cuts will mean for them? The inside-Washington players are easily co-opted and cowed. The American Medical Association came out in opposition to a public option in June, and then -- after a stern talking-to by Washington's political barons -- immediately backtracked.
0
POPSI'm Not Buying GM or Chrysler Should be interesting to see these two companies flounder to their evenutal government-run destruction. Of course it would be nice if they weren't burning up my money to do it. But The Messiah has stolen.
5
POPSShocker: Obama-Run General Motors To Start Outsourcing Car Manufacturing What this illustrates is that the problem with the domestic auto industry all along has been exorbitant labor costs. Or, put more bluntly, the problem has been the UAW. In order to become solvent going forward General Motors most find a cheaper labor pool so that it can compete with its foreign counterparts. That means getting away from the UAW in Mexico, among other places. In summary, we could have saved ourselves billions in bailouts and kept GM’s jobs in America if the Obama administration hadn’t insisted in essentially taking the company over so that the UAW’s labor contracts wouldn’t be re-negotiated in bankruptcy. Now that the UAW has been so artfully protected by Obama, GM has to go overseas to remain profitable. And if Obama blocks this move toward outsourcing (and he can’t be that stupid as even he knows he’s now tied to GM’s future), the company will collapse.
3
POPSBought & Paid For By The UAW * The PAC spent $ 13.1 million, making it the #14 PAC in the country, and placing it ahead of all business PACs except for the National Association of Realtors * $4.9 million in reported independent expenditures, all of it dedicated to helping elect Barack Obama * More than $2 million in direct contributions to candidates, with 99% of it going to Democrats
3
POPS Firms Face New Tax Curbs many members of his own party have expressed reluctance about raising taxes, so prospects for the proposals are uncertain, even though none would take effect until 2011. A senior Republican aide termed the proposals a "revenue grab," predicting they could end up driving more corporate operations overseas. Some or all of the changes could become fodder for broader tax reform next year. "If rules are changed on tax deferral and we are taxed in the U.S. on non-U.S. profit, this significant additional U.S. tax cost would adversely impact our ability to invest and grow our business in the U.S....and to compete against our foreign competitors who are not subject to this U.S. tax," said John Earnhardt The president's tax announcement, to be made with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, is part of an administration plan to raise as much as $210 billion in extra tax revenue over the next decade, in an effort to trim budget deficits and pay for job-creation incentives & other programs.
6
POPSThe Real Culture War Is Over Capitalism 
, small business owners who don't want corporate welfare and bankers who kept their heads during the frenzy and don't need bailouts. They were the people who were doing the important things right -- and who are nowwatching elected politicians reward those who did the important things wrong. Voices in the media, academia, and the government will dismiss this ethical populism as a fringe movement -- maybe even dangerous extremism. In truth, free markets, limited government, and entrepreneurship are still a majoritarian taste. In March 2009, the Pew Research Center asked people if we are better off "in a free market economy even though there may be severe ups and downs from time to time." Fully 70% agreed, versus 20% who disagreed. The government has been abetting this trend for years by exempting an increasing number of Americans from federal taxation. My colleague Adam Lerrick showed in these pages last year that the percentage of American adults who have no federal income-tax liabi
7
POPS Banana Republic Part II One of my clients was directly threatened by the White House and in essence compelled to withdraw its opposition to the deal under the threat that the full force of the White House Press Corps would destroy its reputation if it continued to fight. That's how hard it is to stand on this side of the fence. Beckman: Was that Perella Weinberg? Lauria: That was Perella Weinberg. There is a pattern here. Financial institutions holding billions of Chrysler's secured debt are being held hostage by the TARP loans they are not permitted to pay back. They are being forced to accept just pennies on the dollar for loans they made in good faith less than two years ago. Just like mob loan sharks, the administration wants them under its thumb so they can extort more and more concessions.
1
POPSObama Rescue Buys New GM Car For Each New Bureaucrat "The president's plan creates new jobs in government and that trickles down to the private sector," said Mr. Geithner. "This is a great example of the kind of public-private partnership that will lead America into a swirling vortex of ever-intensifying prosperity. GM will be hard pressed to keep up with the demand." The president will pay for the plan through a 50 percent "luxury tax" on privately-purchased cars that have more than two doors or four cylinders, or that emit carbon monoxide. "As the old saying goes, what's good for the UAW is good for UAW leaders," Mr. Geithner said. "The only way America can sustain its vibrant capitalist economy is by making the stark choice between risk and reward. Speaking for the president and the Treasury department, we choose reward." Examiner columnist Scott Ott is editor-in-chief of ScrappleFace.com, the family-friendly news satire site, and anchor of ScrappleFace Network News (SNN), seen on YouTube.
3
POPSChina grows while the West continues it's descent Over the past ten years, under the radar and the "global economy" BS, they sent their suppliers jobs to China. Now, there customers are there. Which will work fine until the day the Chinese slam shut their borders-keeping our technology, investments and products. Wake up people. This mess is not "subprime mortgages". It is lack of family supporting JOBS. And I'm not talking about the whineass UAW workers jobs. Continue allowing the government to shove high tech and globalization down your throats. Harsh poverty is coming. This is going to make the "Great Depression" seem like a walk in the park.
3
POPSThe Big Bailout Lessons
Over the past century, of course, the conflict between North and South has been between union and non-union labor. The states of the industrial Midwest and the South had common demographics (Appalachian whites and African Americans, though the Northern states also were home to Catholics of Eastern European origin) but developed two distinct economies. Residents of the unionized north enjoyed higher living standards, both from their paychecks and the higher public outlays on health and education, than did their counterparts in the union-resistant South. But, just as Lincoln predicted, the United States was bound to have one labor system prevail, and the debate over the General Motors and Chrysler bailout was really a debate over which system - the United Auto Workers' or the foreign transplant factories' - that would be. Where the parallel between periods breaks down, of course, is in partisan alignment. Today's congressional Republicans are hardly Lincoln's heirs. If an
2
POPS UAW Runs Whining To President-To-Be Barack Obama The UAW is playing the role of Vinnie Barbarino from that horrible 70s sitcom Welcome Back Kotter. When people mention fraud, graft, and corruption, the UAW is saying “what, who, where?” and pretending it doesn’t see any. Then, when the matter is pressed, the UAW looks to blame everyone but itself. This is why there should never be a bailout for the auto makers. Nothing. Not a penny. The unions need to be heavily pressured or there will never be any way for the auto industry to make a competitive come back. Warner Todd Huston Publius Contributor
3
POPSAuto Bailout's Death Seen as a Republican Blow at Unions A bit far fetched to say that a political party would stoop so low as to sacrifice a potentially fine industry (alternative vehicles leading the way) just to take a swipe at the Unions. It is saying that Republicans and their supporters are willing to cause ruination on the nation. Crazy! Especially in times they should realize require cooperation.
1
POPSPoor little UAW! Gettelfinger is so full of crap. The only thing he cares about is his big salary! The UAW is obsolete, bloated, mismanaged and corrupt. The best thing the Big 3 could do would be file bankruptcy, reorganize and get rid of the unions.
3
POPSBush Aid to Automakers Angers Senate GOP Of course, they're right -- Bush just kicked them in the teeth. If the TARP funding is big enough, they should be able to keep going until next year when more solid aid from the Obama admin. and a dem congress is a dead certainty. The Senate GOP may be willing to throw the economy down the toilet just to break a union, but Bush doesn't want to be remembered as the president who's action led to an unprecedented wave of unemployment. Throw a ticking clock, a lame duck session, competing interests, and a president who stopped giving a damn about Republicans some time in November in a pot, mix well, and you've got a party eating itself.
0
POPSAuto Bailout Fails: United Auto Workers (U.A.W). at Fault? To make the economics even better, GM has eliminated health care for salaried retirees. To insure that costs stayed in line new union hires will receive a choice of a high deductible health plan or flex spending plan and a $1.00 per hour 401K to fund their retiree health benefits. Analysts predicted that the labor cost gap between the transplants and the US domestics (especially GM) would be eliminated by 2011 due to these factors and, when combined with increased efficiency that is nearly on par with Toyota, will put GM in the black. All in all, GM’s looking at over $5 billion a year in savings from 2007 costs. While the majority of cost savings will kick in sequentially GM saved $300 million on drug benefits in the first year alone.
3
POPS$14B auto bailout dies in Senate As I said this has nothing to do with the loan, but is really meant to either get rid of the industry or to bring the union/workers to its knees!! Note-- no stipulations were given to the financial bailout of trillions of dollars -- I believe these guys are only making average $28 an hour!! what thats too much?? You're kidding right! Watch out folks this is the last major manufacturing machine we have left -- they've got our money and banks now its this - and with this -- there is no rebuilding America .....
0
POPSUnsafe at Any Speed: Nader VS. Auto Industry - 1960 (c0nt.) And then we hit a stone wall the moment that United Auto Workers allied itself with the auto companies and stopped any increase in fuel efficiency standards. That opened the door for the SUV gas-guzzlers, etc., and that differential that consumers saw between what foreign car companies were selling and what Detroit was selling.
3
POPSNo New Deal for Big Three
Without bankruptcy, however, the Big Three will continue to struggle with labor contracts that have left them unable to produce cars cost-effectively. The United Auto Workers union made vague gestures toward reform after a meeting Wednesday afternoon, but offered few specific concessions. The union refuses to give up the work rules and product commitments that have hobbled the Big Three’s ability to shed jobs and eliminate brands in response to market signals. A bankruptcy judge could throw these provisions out and force the automakers’ unions to accept reality. Even though a radical restructuring in bankruptcy would redound to the Big Three’s long-term benefit, the auto execs are opposed to it because there is nothing in it for them. This is the kind of short-term thinking that led these companies to their present straits. Rewarding them would open the door for any number of large companies to cry “Great Depression” the next time they want a bailout. In this case, the only thing w
1
POPSAuto Hearings: Hypocrisy 101 Last fall, Barack Obama stood with striking UAW workers in Kansas City to oppose a new labor agreement that industry executives said was necessary to survive. “I stand with the 73,000 United Automobile Workers who are striking General Motors,” Sen. Obama thundered. “The demands the union is fighting for — job security, the health benefits they were promised — are things that all workers should expect and that UAW members deserve.” Now, with automakers demanding a bridge loan just so they can live to see the day when that new labor agreement takes effect in 2010, Obama ally and Michigan Democratic Sen. Carl Levin points to the companies’ sins of “paying their executives and their workers too much.” Clearly, these men have no clue that their actions have consequences
2
POPS Managing Risk in an Unstable World those pensions will be replaced by limited government pensions and those free retiree health benefits will vanish altogether. Eliminating risk turned out to be very risky. Which is my answer to those, like Yale Professor Jacob Hacker, who advocate public policies to reduce risk for individuals. In his book The Great Risk Shift, Hacker argues that the move over the past 25 years from defined-benefit pensions (in which an employer pays into a pension fund) to defined-contribution pensions (in which an employer pays into every employee’s personal investment account) makes life unbearably risky for ordinary people. And to be sure, almost everyone’s 401(k) account has shrunk over the last three months. But are those people worse off than Detroit Three retirees? Their 401(k)s may rise in the years ahead. The Detroit Three pensions are at risk of being permanently slashed. My own sense is that ordinary Americans are more resilient than some theorists think.
1
POPSDam union's GM and the rest should pack it up,and relocate overseas. The union's don't want to help out the hell with them.
0
POPSIs letting the auto-makers go bankrupt a better fix? GM says "bankruptcy not an option" Huh!? No cash & need emergency assistance, doesn't that mean they're already bankrupt? This article gives a good overview of the 5 myths that are going to prolong the pain in Detroit & the cost to us as taxpayers.
2
Pops
Newest Clips
Latest Comments
Most Pops
Print
Save
Turn on live update