White House drops car czar, names Geithner-led team to watch over industry
02/16/2009, 8:56 AM
By Andrew Ganz
Just 24 hours before Chrysler and General Motors must present their viability plans to the United States government, the White House has ruled that a team led by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will oversee the industry’s restructuring – not the so-called “car czar” that had been favored early on.
The Presidential Task Force on Autos, as the team is being called, will draw officers from a number of Cabinet agencies and departments. The team will be co-chaired by Geithner and Larry Summers, the director of the National Economic Council.
The Task Force will have the authority to repeal the aid loans should the automakers not make sufficient progress towards their restructuring plans by March 31.
The Task Force will have union representation, as well. Ron Bloom, a special assistant to the president of the United Steelworkers union, will take the position of a senior adviser at the Treasury Department in order to be a member of the team.
Organization of the Task Force was a long-delayed Washington project that has met criticism from Michigan Senator Carl Levin, a Democrat representing the Detroit area.
“The panel will have to work overtime to try to bring all of the stakeholders together to achieve the plan for financial viability required on March 31,” Levin told the Detroit News. “They must also understand that every country in the world that has a domestic auto industry has already taken significant steps to safeguard the survival of their auto industry.”



02/16, 9:02 AM
posted by:
ricky_b
Hope GM and Chysler have done their homework. Have been hearing rumblings that GM may have problems with their plan because the UAW has some beef with what GM management has been asking of them. Not a great time to be playing games on either side.
02/16, 9:37 AM
posted by:
05Z88Path
Real smart…lets give the UAW some more power by making them part of the “Task Force”. It’s kinda like making an accused felon part of the jury in his own trial…
02/16, 9:41 AM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
Whatever. Did anyone else notice how good the new Mustang and Camaro looked pacing the field at Daytona over the weekend?
02/16, 9:43 AM
posted by:
05Z88Path
Yeah Johnny…the Camaro looked damn good. Shame that the finish got rained out though…
02/16, 10:14 AM
posted by:
yarddog82abn
“The Presidential Task Force on Autos, as the team is being called, will draw officers from a number of Cabinet agencies and departments.”, “The Task Force will have union representation, as well”
NOW IS THE TIME TO BUY A NEW DODGE OF CHEVY.!..
WHAT IS THE 1st THING EVERYONE IN CONGRESS ASK THE Big-3?
….”WHY CAN’T YOU MAKE CARS LIKE “TOYOTA & HONDA”?
SO FAR FORD IS NOT GOING TO HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS, (BETTER KNOCK ON WOOD) BUT IF THEY DO. IT MAY BE TIME TO GO STRICTLY GERMAIN…..
02/16, 10:16 AM
posted by:
ManualorDeath
Totally agree with 05Z88Path. I’m hoping that GM doesn’t give the “task force” the run around though
02/16, 10:17 AM
posted by:
ManualorDeath
And Chrysler for that matter
02/16, 10:17 AM
posted by:
Z06ified
This is good. The whole czar thing is idiotic, and anti-democracy. Czars were popular in communist Russia – do we want our country to go down that path? I don’t!
02/16, 10:53 AM
posted by:
AnonymousCoward
“The Presidential Task Force on Autos”… What a lame name. Czar at least has some mojo to it.
02/16, 11:02 AM
posted by:
JakeK66
I swear, if they try to force something on Ford, I’m going to bust a nut.
If they also try and force GM and Chrysler to stop producing V-8s and any high power engines, I’m looking to boycott my federal taxes. I’d be stocking up on high powered sports cars if I had the $$$. You better get a good look at the Mustang and Camaro, JohnnyC, it maybe your last.
02/16, 11:07 AM
posted by:
AnonymousCoward
Oh, the Camaro will be around… The Hyundai Camaro, that is, after they have picked up the pieces from the Chapter 11.
02/16, 11:17 AM
posted by:
Borat
I think GM’s management and UAW counterparts will screw up so badly (just based on past history) that even for Hyundai and Tata there will be nothing to pick up. I do believe that those clowns are aiming for Hiroshima effect in our own back yard.
02/16, 11:18 AM
posted by:
JakeK66
AC, It’s Chapter 7 they will be picking it up from, LOL.
02/16, 12:19 PM
posted by:
RaineMan
If the “Task Force” can force GM to unload about half of its brands that will be some good news. Please let us say goodbye to Hummer, Saturn, Saab, and GMC. Stop the badge-engineering and kill the clones!
02/16, 12:26 PM
posted by:
Bubs Solo
Z06ified
This is good. The whole czar thing is idiotic, and anti-democracy. Czars were popular in communist Russia – do we want our country to go down that path? I don’t!
Czars were popular before communist Russia…not during. During the revolution the Czars heads were rolling down the streets. The “communist Red” theme is from the blood of the overthrown Czars decapitated bodies. Perhaps Czar is a good name then for this position?
02/16, 1:18 PM
posted by:
The Stig
This is politically motivated because the administration couldn’t sell the concept of a “czar” to the industry as a whole. So they reach out to numerous folks, form a coalition, set some lofty accountability goals then wait for the press to die down on the issue and it’s back to business as usual.
02/16, 4:05 PM
posted by:
Madcapp
Z06ified is an incompetent, and therefor should STFU. Czars had nothing to do with communists, one system of government (communisim) superseded the other (Autocracy). The last Czar (Nicolas II), his wife, his son, his four daughters, the family’s medical doctor, his personal servant, the Empress’ chambermaid and the family’s cook were all killed in the same room by the Bolsheviks/Communists on the night of 17 July 1918. The Czar was NEVER popular, except in his own circle.
02/16, 8:48 PM
posted by:
Gundy
Please, please tell me that nobody really believes that Chrysler or General Motors will go out of business. That will not happen, guaranteed. It can’t happen. They might shut down divisions or sell them off, but they will not go out of business, period. Now, about that new Camaro… I agree, it’s super, super sweet. Not to make any enemies, but I’ve never liked the “new” Mustang (new = retro, which I’m not a huge fan of, in general), but the Camaro is different enough from previous generations to be a great design, as far as I’m concerned anyway. It’s not an updated retro vehicle, if they would have called it the C—–/whatever/something, people would just like the look of it, but add “Camaro” to that design and it’s what the Mustang should have been, a fresh, non-derivative design, resting on it’s own merits, which this “Camaro” does very, very well.
02/17, 11:55 AM
posted by:
Need more oil for GM
What’s good for General Motors is good for the Country. GM fails, we all fail
02/18, 9:29 AM
posted by:
fan
nmofgm is kinda right… as much money as the gov. has blown into those l*sers at gm plaza, the country may well fail, if gm fails… then again, maybe its not too late to rescue the country, but anyways, STOP funding a company thats already starting to rot…