congressional_record: CREC-2008-12-12-pt1-PgS10970
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| granule_id | date | congress | session | volume | issue | title | chamber | granule_class | sub_granule_class | page_start | page_end | speakers | bills | citation | full_text |
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| CREC-2008-12-12-pt1-PgS10970 | 2008-12-12 | 110 | 2 | AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY CRISIS | SENATE | SENATE | ALLOTHER | S10970 | S10970 | [{"name": "Ron Wyden", "role": "speaking"}, {"name": "John F. Kerry", "role": "speaking"}] | 154 Cong. Rec. S10970 | Congressional Record, Volume 154 Issue 187 (Friday, December 12, 2008) [Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 187 (Friday, December 12, 2008)] [Senate] [Page S10970] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY CRISIS Mr. WYDEN. Yesterday, when I heard the majority leader was going to call a cloture vote, I changed my schedule and hurriedly returned to Washington, DC, from Oregon, where I had been working on the Oregon Business Plan at the Oregon Business Summit in Portland. I was on an airplane, about an hour away from the Capitol, when the Senate Leader called the vote, and I missed the cloture vote on the $14 billion loan package for the U.S. automobile industry. It is my understanding that if my vote could have possibly made the difference, the Leader would have waited for my plane to arrive, but I want it to be noted that it was my intention to vote for cloture. While I continue to have concerns about ensuring that taxpayers are protected if this loan is to occur, I believe that if the President can unwisely provide $700 billion of taxpayer money for the investment banks that took horribly unacceptable risks and helped trigger an economic collapse, we certainly have a duty to attempt to preserve a cornerstone domestic industry and the jobs of hundreds of thousands of working people whose personal actions are in no way responsible for the current economic crisis. Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I am extremely disappointed that the Senate was not able to pass legislation to make bridge loan funding available to our country's automotive industry--not because I condone the behavior of these companies in recent years which brought them to the brink but because I believe allowing their failure at a time of great economic uncertainty could deal a serious blow to our national economy. The domestic automotive industry represents almost four percent of our Nation's gross domestic product and ten percent of our industrial production by value. One out of every 10 U.S. jobs is impacted by the U.S. automotive industry. GM, Ford and Chrysler account for roughly 65 percent of U.S. auto production and support millions of jobs across all 50 States. The Center for Automotive Research recently reported that in Massachusetts alone, the automobile industry accounts for more than 28,000 jobs and $256 million in wages. The bridge loans that would have been made available through this legislation would have gone to protect not only the jobs dependent on this industry but the American economy as a whole, which is suffering from a widespread liquidity crisis that extends well beyond the vital automotive sector. I believe this critical moment presents an opportunity for the Federal Government and the automobile manufacturers to transform an industry that has long resisted the changes that are so clearly necessary for their continued global competitiveness. The assistance provided in the bill was conditioned upon a commitment by the industry to use this money wisely to become more efficient market participants. The legislation included important provisions that would help ensure American taxpayers that this assistance is not used as a line of credit simply to continue business as usual. The legislation also included important safeguards to limit executive compensation to ensure that taxpayer funds are not wasted. I was absent for the vote that occurred Thursday evening because--as the incoming Foreign Relations Committee Chairman--I was representing the Senate at ongoing international climate change negotiations being held in Poznan, Poland. But I was prepared to return from Poland at a moment's notice had we reached a bipartisan agreement or were my vote needed to pass cloture and break a logjam. Instead, thanks to obstruction by the minority, the 110th Congress has come to a close, and the automobile industry teeters on the brink of collapse. In the absence of Congressional action, I urge the President to tap the Troubled Assets Relief Program so that American automakers can access sufficient capital to survive in the short-term. I remain hopeful that the 111th Congress will be a Congress of real economic progress and will work to ensure that the American automobile industry remains globally competitive in the long-term. ____________________ |