Excerpts from Meet the Press this morning
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27752329/
Moderator: Tom Brokaw
Two of the guests:
Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI)
Tom Friedman of The New York Times
MR. BROKAW: Senator Levin, let me just read to you something that Tom
Friedman wrote in The New York Times last week. "The blame for this
travesty not only belongs to the auto executives, but must be shared
with the entire Michigan delegation in the House and Senate, virtually
all of them, year after year, voted however Detroit automakers and
unions instructed them to vote. That shielded GM, Ford and Chrysler
from environmental concerns, mileage concerns and the full impact of
global competition that could have forced Detroit to adapt a long time
ago."
At a time when Toyota was producing the Prius and Honda, much more
gas-friendly cars, GM, in fact, was turning out the Cadillac Escalade,
the Hummers and other big SUVs that were eating a lot of gasoline when
a lot of people were raising flags.
SEN. LEVIN: We just voted to increase the mileage requirements
earlier this year. We all voted for that, we came to an agreement on
it. We can all look back at history and look for plenty of fault in
plenty of places, by the way, including the Big Three. But this has
changed, and what Tom Friedman and others have not recognized is the
significant changes that have taken place. Half of the, of the hourly
workers at GM have been let go in order to restructure GM. Over a
third of the white collar workers, the salary workers, have been let
go in order to help restructure. The, the unions have taken major
hits on benefits. And we've also seen GM, Ford and Chrysler shift
their product mix. It was under a lot of pressure from the Tom
Friedmans and others. Fine. But it has had an effect. And what
troubles me is that people do not see that that restructuring and that
move into the high-tech and advanced technology vehicles has begun
significantly.
As I said before, GM now produces more models getting more than 30
miles per gallon, twice as many, as any of its competitors. Ford,
Chrysler are moving into the hybrids. We're doing the plug-ins. GM
is going to lead the way in plug-in hybrids if people will recognize
that this isn't the '70s when the, when the Big Three were producing
inferior products. Things have changed, if people will only
recognize what the Big Three, what the UAW have worked out in terms
of concessions, in terms of pay cuts, cuts, in terms of benefit cuts.
Recognize that change, but let it happen. We can't get there unless
we have this temporary infusion to get it over a problem which is not
the creation of the Big Three. This economic collapse is not
the--was not the caused by the Big Three. They had problems that they
did cause 10 years and 20 years ago. They've changed. But the
economic circumstances that we find ourselves in is an international,
global economic problem that, again, no other country with an auto
industry will allow their industry to drop out and die.
...
Tom, let's begin with you. Can Barack Obama, the newly elected
Democrat, as president of the United States look Detroit in the eye
and say, "Drop dead."
MR. TOM FRIEDMAN: I think he can. He may have to, Tom. You know,
Carl Levin, what did he say? He said, "You know, just give us this
$25 billion and, and we'll be OK." Tom, if I thought with $25 billion
we could save this industry, I'd be for it, OK? But I see no plan
right now, no reason to suggest that these people who have driven this
industry into a complete ditch have a plan to get it out in the long
term and not come back to a six, three months from now, for another
$25 billion. Show me that plan.
Remember, what was Detroit's plan two years ago when they, when they
confronted this problem? It was to subsidize gasoline at a $1.99 a
gallon if you bought a Hummer or Suburban or a big truck--that was
their idea of innovation. So, you know, it was like a crack dealer
offering subsidized crack rather than, you know, going to a clinic to
get--to get off the drug. And, and who is the enabler of that? The
enabler of that were the Carl Levins, all the Michigan delegation who
didn't go to these people. The outrage of these people, "Now they--we
have to save these jobs!" Where was their outrage two years ago, OK,
about getting them to be more innovative, to getting them on top of
the energy efficiency question? They have been enabling the
destruction of this industry. So show me a plan. Show me a plan that
says if we give you this $25 billion you're actually going to change.
Absent that--remember, Tom, we're going to charge this $25 billion on
our kids' Visa cards. This goes on our kids' Visa cards, and we have
a moral obligation to make sure this is spent wisely.
MR. BROKAW: That's a pretty tough position, Katty. Do you think the
president can do that?
...
MR. FRIEDMAN: Well, I think this is no normal transition, Tom. We
are in a unique economic crisis, and for four reasons, I think. One,
we've never seen this combination of this much leverage that was
extended over all these years, this much globalization with this much
complexity, this many derivatives, you know, synthetic products that
people didn't understand on the upside, let alone on the downside, and
then it was started in America. Not in Thailand, not in Mexico. You
put this much leverage with this much global integration with this
many complex instruments started in America, and I tell you, Tom, you
have a cocktail that is so explosive. What is it doing? It started
as a credit crisis, then it morphed into an equity crisis, your stock
portfolio went down. Then it morphed into a consumption crisis;
nobody went out and bought. Then it morphed--now it's morphing into
an unemployment crisis. Then it's coming back and intensifying the
credit crisis. That's the loop we're in now. And if we don't find a
way to get America to go back shopping, to, to get the economy
restimulated again, to get a catalyst there, Barack Obama could have
some of his inaugural balls in, in soup kitchens. I mean, I don't
know where this is going to be a couple of months from now.
As I, you know, said in my, my, my column this morning, you know, rent
the movie, "Jaws," look at that last scene where Roy Scheider, you
know, look at that scene where Roy Scheider first glimpses the shark
and he comes in and turns to the captain and says, "You're going to
need a bigger boat." We're going to need a bigger boat. This shark is
so much bigger. And, therefore, I think, to go back to your question,
Tom, I don't know what--we do only have one president at a time. Not
sure what Obama can do. But to Tavis' point, we need to get money to
homeowners, and we need to recapitalize the banking system. And
people say, "Wait a minute, that's unfair." Banks who were
irresponsible are going to get bailed out, that's true. Homeowners
who shouldn't have taken out mortgages are irresponsible--were
irresponsible are going to get bailed out along with people who worked
hard and paid their mortgages. But I--they say that's unfair. I
say--I tell you, Tom, fairness is not on the table any more. There's
only two things on the table. Systemic risk in which we all get wiped
out, or we find a way out of this.
Not having Tivo sucks. 