Sen. Bob Corker -- if you didn't get enough yesterday
After three hours chasing Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., around, I couldn't get it all in today's story. So if you didn't get enough from our story today, here are a few more notes:
Corker passed up a few easy photo-ops. When GM's Ed Welburn suggested he sit in a new Chevy Traverse -- being built in Spring Hill, Tenn. -- Corker declined saying he had already sat in one. He stood with his back to photographers at the Chevy Volt display, though he briefly turned around after much prodding. He sat in a concept Cadillac Converj. The New York Times dubbed his visit: "A senator lands behind enemy lines."
Corker dropped in on Volkswagen AG and noted that people are worried back home that the German automaker might not follow through on its plans to open a factory in Chattanooga in 2011 to build mid-sized sedans. VW officials reassured Corker they are committed despite the down economy. (Toyota recently announced it was halting work on its new plant in Mississippi, which is to assemble Prius vehicles.) He also asked lots of questions about diesel and the fuel economy ratings of new vehicles.
Corker did confess to not knowing the official name of the show -- though he said he would come back. Last year, three presidential candidates Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and John McCain all visited the North American International Auto Show on the eve of the Michigan primary.
Maybe Corker will be back in 2012?
Comments
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Hey - Cork It Already!
A)The south blames the north for being uncompetative.
B) The North (and a lot of other folks) hang the blame on labor costs and quality issues
C) Labor blames it on the engineers who design the vehicles. Afterall, they build what has been designed. If they build it with zero defects and it leaves that plant in tact -they're off the hook
D) The new owne buys and drives the car for 4 years and something significant breaks.
E) The vehicle breaks down at 60K miles. The Dealer Repair shop charges the customer a ton of money to fix it with the same shoddy parts that broke down to begin with.
F) The customer's perception on labor and quality arte reinforced
G) The auto company complaint department gets a nasty call from an irate customer and emphatically states that it will never happen again
H) The new vehicle year starts up (actually the car was designed several years earlier) and is priced by bean counters to show a ROI and profit margin
I) Executive bean counters state they need to get better profits and ask Engineering to re-engineer it using cheaper parts, thinner metal, imported parts or a bunch of stuff in between. (These better profits are supposed to go to the legacy retirement costs, and to show Wall Street good numbers for the quarter.) Shareholders and Retirees rejoice and are Happy!
J) The car is repriced for the target market it's supposed to fill.
K) The engineering changes and design is finalized and sent to production
L)Go back to Step C and Start Over Again.
I think that covers it. Any Questions?
Oops - I forgot to add, Environmentally Active Elected Officials throw the Auto Industry Under the Bus - when they're business model of tax and spend is full of waste too.
Sen. Corker at Detroit Auto show
These negative posts on Corker are too much. I haven't seen any that have refuted his arguments on a factual basis.
It has to be spillover from the Freep.
Gettlefinger should be reminded that Obama is on the record
that there is not going to be a blank check.
I know, a lot of this is UAW posturing. However, political consequences aside, I think Obama is more than willing to listen to Corker's plan to save the industry.
Sen. Corker at Detroit Auto show
Lets' make one thing clear, there is presently little difference between the quality of the Domestic and the Foreign Auto Manufacturers. The problem the Domestics face is one of perception based on the products that they used to produce. California is a prime example of this. People buy what has worked for them over the years and go where they are treated well by the service people. So if a Domestic and a Foreign make cost the same, many will choose the Foreign make based on experience. They would likely be very wrong if they chose a German manufacturer over a Domestic.
When it comes to labor and labor overhead costs it would appear that the only one with any business acumen, in Congress, is Sen. Corker. His proposal addresses the true issues behind the Domestic Auto manufacturers lack of competitiveness. He did not target solely the Unions rather all creditors. It was only the intransigence of the Unions that brought them to the forefront. Of course Mr. Gettlefinger does not wish to commit to any concessions, as that will lead to his demise and the gravy train he has been on. The same holds true for the Democrats that have been attempting to prop up the unions because of their substantial contributions to the Democratic coffers. Michigan Senators Levin and Sabenow are prime examples, they talk a lot, have nothing positive to contribute, and blame everyone else. The fact is that pouring good money after bad will not lead to a resurgence of the Domestic Auto makers, they may survive for a period of time, until the next time the economy tanks, and they once again will need money in order to survive.
President Bush has thrown the problem over to the Obama camp which just about assures the UAW that business will be conducted as usual. What will be the prospect of a GM and Chrysler survival if the proposed Obama magic is just another economic hoax ?
UAW
Dear Mr. Shepardson:
Please ask Bob Corker and Richard Shelby why similar model foreign cars made with non-union labor cost about the same as Ford, GM and Chrysler? Check out Hyundai Sonata, Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion and GM Malibu.
Auto Show
I don't care for McCain, Corker, or Huckabee, but Mitt Romney is more than welcome at our auto show. He's the only one who care about the industry and the only one I can even listen to without getting sick.
Competitive wages
Remember that everyone in the South has high air-conditioning bills in the summer, people drive father to vacation at waterfront property, etc. Everything is different everywhere. The problem stems from 50 year old retirees, people lounging around in job banks, an the inability to fire lazy non-productive workers.
Taxpayers all over the USA do not want to support these type of work rules. Sorry, it is an old way of doing things, we compete in a world economy, and UAW types need to go back to work and be productive.
Stop looking back and making excuses, it is a new world, get used to it.
Competitive wages
Mr. Corker - Please use some basic common sense when you talk about competitive wages between UAW and the transplants. Can you realize the weather conditions between the midwest and the south when you visited Detroit for the auto show. Auto workers in the midwest are living in sub-zero weather where as the auto workers in the south are living in a comfortable environment. They don't have to pay for heating bills, winter maintainence, clothing and so on. How can you justify your statement to have a competitive wage between UAW and the transplants.
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