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People say "Detroit" deserves to fail. Maybe, but as you can tell by the map below of every manufacturing facility from the domestic automakers, they'll take pretty much the entire Midwest with 'em. More »
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Apparently the Department of Energy is really slow when it comes to writing checks, as the Detroit News now reports that Detroit automakers may not get their recently approved loan packages until mid-way through 2010. DOE spokesperson Healy Baumgardner said "there are a number of legal and administrative requirements with which the Department must comply, such as the National Environmental Policy Act, we anticipate it could take at least 6 to 18 months or more, after necessary funds are appropriated." Which, of course, is a bureaucratic way of saying "red tape." Not surprisingly, the news didn't sit well with Michigan lawmakers and representatives from the Detroit Three, who had been laboring under the impression that checks would be cut as early as January 2009. More »
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After a nasty summer of sliding sales and eroding market share, domestic automakers are planning to lobby the US Congress for $50 billion in low-interest government loans. The companies claim the money would allow them to modernize plants and develop new fuel-efficient vehicles; ordinarily, automakers would have tapped existing lines of credit for the required cash, but rising interest rates combined with debt ratings reduced to junk status have rendered their options severely limited. But, the important thing to note here is that this is NOT a bailout. No sir. More »
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