Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal and Shreveport mayor Cedric Glover will be visiting the Motor City August 15 in an effort to save jobs at a Shreveport GM plant. GM Shreveport builds mid-size pickup trucks including the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon, along with the Hummer H3 SUV, all three of which have seen sales steadily decline in the past six months. General Motors last week announced the loss of Shreveport's second shift, apparently prompting the local gub'ment to take what has to be the humiliating step of coming to Detroit to beg for jobs.
Jalopnik Snap Judgment: Governor Jindal has said that "their intent for the trip is to make it clear to GM that Louisiana is willing to be aggressive in being GM's partner in putting people back to work in Louisiana." In other words, Louisiana government leaders are willing to supply GM with healthy financial incentives to keep the Shreveport plant open. In this case, it may help: GM spent a fair chunk of change recently to modernize the facility, so the company may decide to retool for an additional product rather than close the plant outright should smaller pickups be deemed beyond salvation. [Detroit News; Photo Credit: Ciotello.com]