Are Selfish, Greedy Bond Brokers Keeping The Automotive Industry From Recovering?

With all the hubbub over the automobile industry we went right to our go-to-man on the scene: Congressman Gary Peters (D-MI), whose district is home to Chrysler World Headquarters and more auto suppliers than any other congressional district in the country. Please recall that as a member of the Financial Service Committee, Gary turned the whole A.I.G. hearing around when he shattered conventional Inside-the-Beltway/Wall Street wisdom by bringing up the disparity between how the sanctity of contracts for millionaires is handled compared to how routinely disposable contracts for working American families are.

Monday Gary, who's been busy crafting legislation that would allow laid off workers in hard hit regions greater access to existing support as well as to retraining programs for displaced workers, called on the administration to force concessions not from organized labor as it pushes the 2 distressed auto companies to restructure, but from the large financial institutions that are creditors to Chrysler and GM. Here's what Gary told us yesterday about his struggle on behalf of working families in Oakland County.

“The president has announced further short term assistance for General Motors and Chrysler, and outlined a process for the auto manufacturers and stakeholders to continue the difficult work of restructuring these companies. 
 
“The success of that restructuring is in large part dependent on debt holders’ willingness to cooperate with automakers and President Obama’s aggressive support in making that happen. Make no mistake-- in Chrysler’s case, some of these debt holders are financial institutions that exist today only because of government support. In fact, the three institutions holding the majority of Chrysler’s first lien debt are among the largest recipients of taxpayer money through the TARP. 
 
“Yet these institutions now stand hypocritically unwilling to cooperate with the government to help maintain an American auto industry and protect hundreds of thousands of jobs. These large financial firms must understand that the taxpayer support they were provided isn’t about enriching them, it is meant to protect jobs, get credit flowing to consumers and businesses and get our economy back on track. That means protecting jobs and helping our domestic auto industry weather the credit crisis they created so they can start selling cars again. History shows that getting car markets moving is one of the best ways to get out of recession.
 
“The president has offered General Motors and Chrysler more time, but time alone isn’t enough.  The president must use that time to support the auto companies as they strive to achieve the lofty objectives his task force has demanded.

Gary is the kind of candidate Blue America supports. Last year we helped him defeat rubber stamp tool Joe Knollenberg. Next year the GOP is vowing to target Gary and take back the district. I know times are tough right now, but if you'd like to help a deserving fighter for working families, you won't find many as consistent and as tenacious as Gary Peters. Even a $5 or $10 contribution would be a help, here at the Blue America ActBlue page.