I see that Megan McArdle has come around to my view of the GM bailout:
To put that in perspective, GM had about 75,000 hourly workers before the bankruptcy. We could have given each of them a cool $250,000 and still come out well ahead compared to the ultimate cost of the bailout including the tax breaks–and over $100,000 a piece if we just wanted to break even against our losses on the common stock.
Me, in December 2008:
If we’re bound and determined to spend $5 billion a month for the sake of people who work in the auto industry, here’s my suggestion: pay the money to them directly. We don’t need GM or Chrysler for that. Let’s start a roster of people who’ve been laid off or fired from the auto industry. They’ll need a W-2 and documentation of the termination.
The estimate I’ve seen is that may be as many as 2 million people. If it’s that many and if you pay them directly, that would come to $2,500 per person per month. Not princely but enough to get by on.
While I’m on the subject of GM I wonder if anybody has noticed that the fix is in. The new guidelines for new acquisitions in the federal vehicle fleet call for more green autos, i.e. EVs and hybrids. Combine that with buying domestic. Can you say “directed bid”? I knew you could.
But, but, but…why do you hate babies Dave.
You are history’s greatest monster.
I got nothing, well except, tell me about this rational government policy thing again?
Gas on the fire.
Everything you said (as did I) its subsidy for unions, subsidy for smart, er, stupid cars and spoiling the sanctity of a first priority lien………………which, and will get absolutely no press, has had an undeniably chilling effect on lending.
I’m tellin’ ya. Perhaps the most incompetant President ever……at least since Jimmy.
Waiting for Reynolds to pronounce me a racist……
The main thing I saw about the auto bailouts was the inevitability. People can (and did) fault me, because they objected to my analysis, but I don’t think there was ever a chance to avoid the bailout.
Or, and I know this is painful to some, if there was it was at that moment when GWB could have refused bridge support, to get the autos out into the Obama years. That one-two showed the bipartisan complicity.
Still, I’m a little sad, though not too surprised, when I read such accountings in the aftermath. But, what could we realistically do?
The fix was in.
The time is rapidly approaching when all the Bailouts – Wall Street, GM, Ethanol… and free s**t WILL END as the United States government follows in the footsteps of Russia, Argentina and soon to be Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Spain… and collapses due to out of control spending and an inability to pay it’s debts.
It will end with a broken, civil war torn United States with the economy of Mexico and the political culture of Argentina and Zimbabwe.