I guess we now know why GM does not need additional bailout funds this month, they are getting it through their suppliers. So not the automakers are getting help on FIVE fronts:
- Direct government bailout money
- Cheap access to credit via their finance companies such as GMAC
- Bailout funds for their parts suppliers
- Government guarantees of worker pension arrangements
- Consumer tax credits for the purchase of particular electric cars (i.e. $7,500 if any of us waste our money on a Volt)
The funny thing is, Team Obama is still hard at work on MORE options … including protectionist measures (“let’s re-examine NAFTA”), changes in energy policy to favor particular auto companies, and god knows what else. What was that old saying about lipstick on a pig?
