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Thursday, 20 November 2008 |
By MIKE BURKHOLDER
Managing Editor
WASHINGTON — As legislators in the nation’s capital grapple over a bailout package for the “Big Three” automakers, two Ohio politicians differ on how to help pull the sagging industry out of its slump.
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, stressed the importance of providing assistance to Ford, General Motors and Chrysler in order to keep the trio from falling into bankruptcy. Brown said the assistance should come in the form of a $25 billion bridge loan carved out of the $700 billion bailout package.
“This is critical to the economic livelihood of Ohioans,” Brown said in a teleconference with regional media. “Unfortunately we are facing opposition from many in the Bush administration and that is unfathomable. We already gave billions to AIG and they are drawing the line in the sand on the auto industry.”
Brown said failing to provide the loans to the auto industry could lead to its collapse — an outcome that could cost millions of Americans to lose their jobs.
Brown prodded members of Congress, mostly Republicans, to get on board with the proposal or risk sending the U.S. economy into a downward spiral.
“The cost of inaction is too high,” Brown said. “(A way to) turn a recession into a depression is to let the auto industry collapse. If the Bush administration can run to the rescue of AIG, there is no excuse for turning their back on the auto industry when you look at how many jobs it’s connected to.”
If the auto industry falls into bankruptcy, Brown said it could spell disaster for much of Ohio. Brown said scores of jobs across the state are impacted by the industry.
“No action would mean the auto part firms would be in as big of trouble as the auto industry,” Brown said.
“We just need them (auto industry) to stay in business and keep moving ahead. When the economy gets better, they will become vibrant companies again — we hope.”
On the flip side, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, cautioned against providing the auto industry with a bailout at the expense of the taxpayers. The Congressman said providing a handout to the auto firms would be a waste of money and add to the soaring national debt.
“First off, once you start down this road, it’s tough to turn back,” Jordan told The Evening Leader. “Once you start the process, everyone tries to line up and get money.”
Jordan cited evidence of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae continuing to lose money despite a bailout package to help the mortgage giants. Jordan said if legislators continue to dole out large sums of money to these firms, the U.S. economy could be in shambles for years.
“It’s wrong to saddle our kids and grandkids with this debt,” Jordan said. “I understand how important the auto industry is and it’s important we do things to help the economy. We tried to get an energy policy in place that would have helped our energy situation. One of the best things we can do for the auto industry is to keep fuel prices low.”
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 26 November 2008 )
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