I sent the following letter to my local Legislators as well as the Speaker of the House and the President.
Dear President Bush,
I write to you with some thoughts and concerns on the Auto Industry loan request.
I support the Big 3 in there quest to secure Government loans / lines of credit.
As far as the US economy goes. I believe that if any one of the Big 3 were to close there doors, the US economy would finally collapse completely.
I work as a steel worker in Brackenridge, PA. The snowball effect that a US Automaker closing would have on me, my family, my co-workers, my neighbors, my local businesses, my town, my state and finally my country would be devastating.
I can understand the government’s position on wanting to see a business game plan before considering the giving out of any loans.
I also understand the government’s position on bankruptcy as far as the auto industry is concerned. "Bankruptcy" that’s what businesses do when they are unable to make it in the real world. And that would be correct in almost every situation except this one.
Ask yourself, in all honesty; would you really purchase a $25,000 or $30,000 or even a $40,000 automobile from a company that is under "Bankruptcy." I doubt it and I think most other people would feel the same way. It's not like were buying a $500 Television, this is a major purchase.
If bankruptcy is forced upon the auto industry, I feel sorry for all of the families; from the UAW, to the car dealers, to the parts manufacturers, to the industy workers that supply the parts manufacturers, to the NAPA employees and Joe's auto parts, etc. This snowball will just keep growing.
I believe that it wasn't very smart for the US auto executives to fly to Washington in there private airplanes to ask for a loan. But on the other hand, I find it petty that the executives were even asked that question at all.
AIG and Citi Bank have just been given Hundreds of Billions of dollars. The key word here is "Given", no questions asked, no business plans, no nothing and those CEO's weren't even asked how they got to Washington. What goes here!!
I'm not going to complain about how the Financial Executives were treated. What I am going to ask for is latitude, latitude for the Auto executives to run there businesses as they see fit. Yes there have been some ill-advised decisions in the past, but the ship has been turned around; it just needs some help to sail.
In closing I would like to see Our Government fund any and all loans that the Auto Executives are requesting. What I don't want to see are the communities around where I live and throughout the US become depressed because of the decision you made.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Kirby A. Decroo Jr.
Here is the only responce that I recieved:
Dear Mr. Decroo:
Thank you for taking the time to contact me about the proposed bailout of the automotive industry. I appreciate hearing from all Pennsylvanians about the issues that matter most to them.
Currently we face troubling economic conditions. Our economy is shedding jobs and spiraling into what could be a severe and prolonged recession. The domestic auto companies are the latest firms to face difficulty due to recent sharp declines in demand, the freezing of the credit markets as well as various problems the domestic auto industry has been grappling with over the past several years. While some of these issues are the industry's creation, the American economy is dependent upon the auto industry for its health and stability. Today, one in ten of our Nation's manufacturing jobs are tied to the auto industry. If the largest auto companies fail, 2.5 million jobs could be lost, translating into a loss of personal income on the order of $125 billion. Suppliers, dealers and countless other small businesses would feel a deep and instant impact.
Let me be clear -- I do not support bailing out auto companies, but instead providing them loans with strict conditions that require them to improve their products and their operations. In addition, this support should provide targeted aide to their financing arms to assist auto dealers and consumers. The funding for this assistance should not require additional taxpayer funding but instead be extended through one of the existing programs: the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) with all of the previously agreed to protections regarding executive compensation restrictions and oversight; or, alternatively, temporarily diverted funding that was previously approved to help automakers retool in order to meet fuel efficiency standards. I am willing to support one or the other of these actions because of the necessity of protecting the broader economy and specifically the jobs of millions of Americans in these uncertain times.
Decades ago, the U.S. steel industry was in a similar position. At that time, the government could not have saved all of the companies or all of the jobs, but it could have helped the industry modernize and its workers develop new skills and new jobs. I do not believe we should repeat the mistakes of the past, particularly when thousands of jobs in Pennsylvania depend on supplying parts and services to the auto industry.
Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future about this or any other matter of importance to you.
If you have access to the Internet, I encourage you to visit my web site,
http://casey.senate.gov. I invite you to use this online office as a comprehensive resource to stay up-to-date on my work in Washington, request assistance from my office or share with me your thoughts on the issues that matter most to you and to Pennsylvania.
Sincerely,
Bob Casey
United States Senator