GM Goes From Bad to Worse Despite Obama Bailout

Barone

• GM has been selling cars in the U.S. at deep discount and, while it's making money in China -- and is outsourcing operations there and elsewhere -- it's bleeding losses in Europe.
• It botched the launch of its new Chevrolet Malibu by starting with the green-friendly Eco version, which pleased its government shareholders, but which got lousy reviews.
• "GM is going from bad to worse," reads the headline on Automotive News Editor in Chief Keith Crain's analysis.
• Obama administration permitted GM to continue to deduct previous losses from current profits, even though such deductions are ordinarily wiped out in bankruptcy proceedings.
• Rattner himself admitted late last year, in a speech to the Detroit Economic Club: "We should have asked the UAW (the United Auto Workers union) to do a bit more. We did not ask any UAW member to take a cut in their pay." Non-union employees of GM spinoff Delphi lost their pensions. UAW members didn't.
  
  The UAW got their political payoff.

If the media was neutral, it would examine Obama's claims critically.  But it doesn't.  The bailout wasn't as successful as the public is being led to believe.  As a consequence, it gets good poll numbers that it doesn't deserve.