Dems want automakers to show bailout spending plan

• Author unknown

  Henry IV and Gregory VII had a sense of drama and proportion the Big Three CEO's failed to understand.

  http://zaetsch.blogspot.com/2008/11/henry-iv-and-gregory-vii...
  48 days ago in Developers are Crabgrass · Authority: 9

  Much as John McCain showed deference to the Council for National Policy in waiting for and allowing them to hand him Sarah Palin as their vetted choice to be his running mate; a comparable capitulation occurred centuries ago, during the Investiture Controversy: The Investiture Controversy was the most significant conflict between secular and religious powers in medieval Europe. It began as a dispute in the 11th century between the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and the Pope concerning who would control appointments of church officials (investiture). It would eventually lead to nearly fifty years of civil war in Germany and the disintegration of the German empire, a condition from which it would not recover until the reunification of Germany in the 19th century. Prior to the Investiture Controversy, the appointment of church officials, while theoretically a task of the Church, was in practice performed by secular authorities. The ceremony of investiture consisted of the newly appointed bishop or abbot coming before the secular leader, who would then hand over a staff and ring as objects of power granted to them. Since a substantial amount of wealth and land was often associated with the position of bishop or abbot, it was materially beneficial for a secular ruler to appoint someone loyal to him. A crisis arose when a group within the church, members of the Gregorian Reform, decided to liberate the church from the power secular leaders held over them through elimination of the investiture ceremony, this was the beginning of the Investiture Controversy. The Gregorian reformers knew this would not be possible so long as the Emperor maintained the ability to appoint the Pope, so the first step was to liberate the papacy from control by the Emperor. An opportunity came in the 1050s when Henry IV became Emperor at a young age. Once the papacy gained control of the election of the Pope, it was now ready to attack the practice of investiture on a broad front. In 1075 Pope Gregory VII declared in the Dictatus Papae the elimination of the practice of investiture. By this time, Henry IV of Germany was no longer a child, and he reacted to this declaration by sending Gregory VII a letter in which he, in effect, removed Gregory as pope and called for the election of a new pope. Enforcing these declarations was a different matter, but fate was on the side of Gregory VII. The German aristocracy was happy to hear of the their king's deposition. They would use the cover of religion as an excuse for rebellion and the seizure of royal powers. Henry IV had no choice but to back down, needing time to marshall his forces to fight the rebellion in his kingdom. In 1077 he traveled to Canossa in northern Italy to meet the Pope and apologize in person. As penance for his sins, he dramatically wore a hairshirt and stood in the snow barefoot in the middle of winter in what has become known as the Walk to Canossa. Gregory lifted the excommunication, but the German aristocrats, whose rebellion became known as the Great Saxon Revolt, were not so willing to give up their opportunity. They elected a rival king named Rudolf. In 1081 Henry IV was able to capture and kill Rudolf, and in the same year he invaded Rome with the intent of forcibly removing Gregory VII and installing a more friendly pope. The Investiture Controversy would continue on for several decades as each succeeding Pope tried to fight the investiture by stirring up revolt in Germany. Henry IV was succeeded upon death in 1106 by his son Henry V, who was also unwilling to give up investiture. After fifty years of fighting, a compromise was finally reached in 1122, known as the Concordat of Worms. It was agreed that investiture would be eliminated, while room would be provided for secular leaders to have unofficial but significant input in the appointment process. Blurring of separation of church and state within GOP ranks probably reaches to Reagan melding Goldwater conservatism with the theocratic aims of Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, for coalition building - and McCain's clear capitulation to it via the Palin debacle might be its death knell, in its present embodiment. Perhaps present GOP "aristocrats" and "prelates" liking or disliking separation of church and state in our post-election days will be going through a similar showdown between a secular wing that yielded inappropriately to the Council for National Policy and suffered for it; and a Dr. Dobson led pro-Council for National Policy wing. Perhaps not, although such facing of the mirror might be called for as more and more seats have been lost for obvious but mixed reasons. Aside from that, the Walk to Canossa within the Investiture Controversy is what I highlight, for what follows below, that Walk being where the big-time Emperor showed due respect for his vexed and uncertain position and plea, and did "penance for his sins, he dramatically wore a hairshirt and stood in the snow barefoot in the middle of winter" seeking to have an excommunication lifted. CNN online reported something a bit different: Some lawmakers lashed out at the CEOs of the Big Three auto companies Wednesday for flying private jets to Washington to request taxpayer bailout money. "There is a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying into Washington, D.C., and people coming off of them with tin cups in their hand, saying that they're going to be trimming down and streamlining their businesses," Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-New York, told the chief executive officers of Ford, Chrysler and General Motors at a hearing of the House Financial Services Committee. "It's almost like seeing a guy show up at the soup kitchen in high hat and tuxedo. It kind of makes you a little bit suspicious." He added, "couldn't you all have downgraded to first class or jet-pooled or something to get here? It would have at least sent a message that you do get it." The executives -- Alan Mulally of Ford, Robert Nardelli of Chrysler and Richard Wagoner of GM -- were seeking support for a $25 billion loan package. At Wednesday's hearing, Rep. Brad Sherman, D-California, pressed the private-jet issue, asking the three CEOs to "raise their hand if they flew here commercial." "Let the record show, no hands went up," Sherman said. "Second, I'm going to ask you to raise your hand if you are planning to sell your jet in place now and fly back commercial. Let the record show, no hands went up." The executives did not specifically respond to those remarks. In their testimony, they said they are streamlining business operations in general. "Making a big to-do about this when issues vital to the jobs of millions of Americans are being discussed in Washington is diverting attention away from a critical debate that will determine the future health of the auto industry and the American economy," GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson said in a statement. Chrysler spokeswoman Lori McTavish said in a statement, "while always being mindful of company costs, all business travel requires the highest standard of safety for all employees." But those statements did little to mollify the critics. "If it is simply the company's money at stake, then only the shareholders can be upset or feel as it might be excessive," said Thomas Schatz, president of the watchdog group Citizens Against Government Waste. But in this case, he said, "it's outrageous." "They're coming to Washington to beg the taxpayers to help them. It's unseemly to be running around on a $20,000 flight versus a $500 round trip," Schatz added. Does the word "clueless" come to mind for you? It does for me. And this big-bucks fly-in, does it resonate "Roger and Me" with you, the same haughtiness and hubris, unrepentant and unchanged? It does for me. _____UPDATE_______ As part of the appearance of cluelessness, the Big Three came without due preparation or clear answers. When faced with the question, "When will you run out of money," GM's chief reportedly had no real answer: General Motors announced Nov. 7 that it could run out of the cash needed for operations by the end of this year or early next year without federal assistance. In testimony before the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday, Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli said his company is also at risk of running out of the cash it needs to operate in that time frame. But Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., said he wasn't sure it was proper to be bailing out the automakers and he didn't like the demand that action be taken in this lame duck session of Congress. "I am not yet convinced that we must act so rashly," he said. "The American public demands that we get this right." Kanjorski asked Wagoner for the minimum amount of money necessary to keep GM afloat through March 30 in order to give Congress more time to work on a bailout package. "When will you run out of money?" he asked. But Wagoner wouldn't give more details beyond the company's previous statement that it could be out of cash later this year or early next year. "I don't believe we have the luxury of a lot of time," he said, and when pressed for an exact deadline, responded, "I can't tell you that for certain." Democratic leadership was reported in each house as noting a problematic lack of any precise plan for why a bailout was currently necessary, how $25 billion in rescue pork would be used, how the industry might assure no future return for yet more taxpayer cash, or how the Big Three would change business habits to justify Congressional faith: "The key is accountability and viability," Reid said. "We want them to get their act together." "Until they show us the plan, we cannot show them the money," added Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi at a news conference in the Capitol. ________ AP photo accompanied the CNN article. Investiture Controversy drawings, from here.

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    Struggles with Auto Industry Bailout Dampen Los Angeles Auto Show

    http://www.blogher.com/struggles-auto-industry-bailout-dampe...
    49 days ago in BlogHer · Authority: 2,726

    When leaders of the Automotive Big Three left Washington empty handed Wednesday night, it became clear that the industry's immediate future may now lie with the Bush administration, which has staunchly opposed using the Treasury Department's $700 billion financial bailout program to aid Detroit. Top Executives from General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler begged Congress for multi-billion-dollar loans, but fell under fire for arriving in private - costly - jets.  This morning, Democrat leaders lead a televised news conference to "to discuss the details of a bipartisan agreement on a bill to support the auto industry."  Their last-ditch pitch aims to provide $25 billion in quick aid to an   industry that faces a catastrophic collapse if some kind of assistance is not found. Aware that a cohesive plan to provide assistance to the automotive industry cannot be assembled before they leave for the upcoming holidays, Senators have pledged to reconvene Congress in the upcoming weeks to figure out how to provide emergency government aid  to weather the steep business downturn seen in recent weeks. The auto industry has been given until December 2 to devise a plan that will provide a path to "accountability and viability," though House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stressed that the plan must show they are transforming the industry in a way that it would become competitive, and that they must be clear about how the federal loan money will used.  "This is an important industry in our country and we intend to save it," Pelosi said. "Until they show us a plan we cannot show them the money." Even this small amount of optimism has shown its effects: Shares of GM and Ford turned positive on news of the compromise talks on hopes that Washington would agree to help Detroit's Big Three. General Motors Corp. rose 9 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $2.88, while Ford Motor Co. rose 13 cents, or 10.3 percent, to $1.39. (Chrysler is privately held.) Otherwise, according to Yahoo!finance, stocks fell for a second straight day today, plunging to the lowest levels in at least five years. As the media days of the Los Angeles Auto Show were underway, the subject was on the lips of nearly every journalist there. Even as automakers unveiled stunning new models, the automotive industy crisis cast a pall on the excitement. Conversations in which we participated touched on the importance of the industry to the country's economy, how the government can best provide assistance, and how the automakers came to be in this situation. The poor example the executives set by traveling in such expensive fashion dropped the jaws of more than a few colleagues. And many of us wondered about the upcoming auto season as we prepare for industry cutbacks in new-car development and promotion. Everybody has something to say about it, even Consumer Reports has issued an official opinion. Nissan's Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn opened the auto show with a media breakfast on Wednesday, saying the weakening global auto market now facing the industry will knock out some competitors and lead some automakers to consolidate. "We're still stuck in a situation where credit is not flowing normally, and the recession that began in the United States is not only deepening but spreading across the globe," Ghosn said. "It's fair to say that no one, no one, had predicted how the global economy would be so volatile in 2008." Normally, auto show media days are packed with glitzy new car reveals as well as enthusiastic media reps and journalists, but automakers are cutting back in this year's Los Angeles and Detroit Auto Shows;  some aren't showing up at all. These shows are the premiere events to showcase their new vehicles and court new customers. "Clearly, we're affected," said Andy Fuzesi, general manager and co-owner of the Los Angeles Auto Show. "Everybody is clearly reassessing where they spend their money." A tragic irony lies in the fact that gas is at the lowest price it has been in years and people have no money to spend on cars. And it's not just domestic manufacturers being affected: The New York Times has revealed that the Port of Los Angeles has become a parking lot for import cars that have nowhere to go. "Unwelcome by dealers and buyers, thousands of cars worth tens of millions of dollars are being warehoused on increasingly crowded port property... While shipments for some items have slowed, the cars have kept coming in at their regular pace partly -- because the auto factories can take months to adjust to changes in demand. Toyota is wrapping up a deal to use six acres to park cars at the port, and is seeking more space." If you consider every tiny component in a car -- wires, fabric, carpet, buttons, straps, fasteners, etc -- then it becomes more clear how important it is to keep these bigger businesses viable. Some of these small-parts manufacturers may even provide these specialized items internationally, which means that if one of these Big Three companies goes down, it may take these suppliers with them and potentially affect other car manufacturers around the world. If auto show season puts you in the market for a new car, dealers are offering remarkable incentives to assist your purchase.  While you're walking the shows and wishing for your next new car, also keep in mind that it's now more important than ever to buy domestic. Jody DeVere President and CEO http://www.askpatty.com http://www.carblabber.com

    • Author unknown

      What?! You want a budget and a Business Plan?!

      http://incompatible.net/blogs/blog1.php/2008/11/20/what-you-...
      49 days ago in Old Gay Lawyer Ramblings · No authority yet

      http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/20/congress.auto.bailout/index.html Oh Lordy! What has come to pass. The Democrats in Congress, fresh from the election sweep are starting to feel their oats. Oats dusted with viagra I suspect. They want the Big 3 Auto CEOs to submit a spending plan and a business plan for the 25 billion dollars they tell us they just can't live with out. They said this just as they are getting ready to leave town in commercial aircraft while Huey, Dewey and Louie (the Ford, GM, and Chrysler CEOs) are hanging around the Hill with their mouths open. They are the same guys by the way who created the mess they want you and me to clean up and pay for. Not only do they want us to pic up the lunch tab, but I expect that each of them is hoping to get fired so they can use their lovely new golden parachutes as they head for wherever it is that overpaid CEOs winter. Original post blogged on b2evolution.

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