They'll burn through that in three or four months, of course.

Majority Democrats and the Bush White House have finalized a deal to speed $14 billion in emergency loans to struggling U.S. automakers, congressional officials said Wednesday. Strong opposition lingered among some Republicans.

The White House did not go as far as to say the deal was final, although it did report "very good progress." The measure could see a House vote later Wednesday and be enacted by week's end. Then, money could be disbursed within days to cash-starved General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC, while Ford Motor Co.—which has said it has enough liquidity to stay afloat—would be eligible for federal aid.

It would create a government "car czar" named by President George W. Bush to dole out the loans, with the power to force the carmakers into bankruptcy next spring if they didn't cut quick deals with labor unions, creditors and others to restructure their businesses and become viable.

Congressional Republicans, left out of negotiations on the package, expressed grave reservations. A handful in the Senate promised to block the measure, which could delay a final vote for days.

Sen. David Vitter, R-La. said the package has an "ass-backwards" approach to curing what ails the U.S. auto industry_ giving carmakers money immediately, and only later demanding that they restructure.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, the GOP leader, said his side hadn't seen the measure as of Wednesday morning and wouldn't agree to immediate votes. "Republicans will not allow taxpayers to subsidize failure," he said, although McConnell added that the auto situation would be addressed by the end of the week.

Kausfiles is annoyed:

Why shouldn't the bailout deal include an explicit reopening of labor contracts? If the new "auto czar" can order the companies to restructure, tell them to build smaller cars and veto any expenditure over $25 million, shouldn't he or she be able to require the UAW to give up the precious work rules that have rendered the domestically-owned industry inflexible and inefficient for decades? To be really effective, the bailout deal would have to "restructure" the UAW itself, so that union locals don't have an effective veto over productive labor practices proven in, say, the GM-Toyota NUMMI joint venture in San Jose, California.

I don't know what the actual deal contains (later NYT and other stories are vague), but this seems like a useful bright line for opponents of corporatist bailout-creep to draw: If the taxpayers are going to foot the bill, then the goal has to be a successful industry in the long run--not a Congressional fix designed to protect the UAW from what it would face in a normal bankruptcy. That means rewritten contracts. If the UAW members didn't want that, they shouldn't have let their firms go broke--that is, they should have made the concessions they're making now, and more, years ago, when it would have made the difference.

Requiring painful, bankruptcy-style reopening would set a cautionary precedent. Just as Rick Wagoner's removal will warn timid management, it would warn unions that their function isn't to squeeze the absolute maximum possible from their companies every moment. They need to leave enough of a margin of error so that in a downturn their industry doesn't have to come running to the taxpayers.

Even if one supports the idea of a bailout of some kind, this is, as expected, the wrong kind of bailout.

Posted by: Ace at 11:02 AM | Comments (70)
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We here at AoSHQ would like to wish Governor (for now) Rod Blagojevich the happiest of birthdays.

Really. Our heartfelt card is below: more...

Posted by: Slublog at 10:52 AM | Comments (35)
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David Axelrod, scolding Fitzgerald's investigations:

Patrick FitzgeraldÂ’s charges against Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich have drawn a chorus of shock and outrage.

But Barack ObamaÂ’s message man David Axelrod once staked out a much more nuanced position on FitzgeraldÂ’s anti-corruption crusade.

In a 2005 op-ed, Axelrod argued, in effect, that trading political favors – including jobs – is part of the grease that makes government work.

He ripped Fitzgerald at the time for trying “to use the criminal code to enforce (his) vision” of “entirely remov(ing) politics from government.”

The piece in the Chicago Tribune was prompted by FitzgeraldÂ’s indictment of aides to Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley for conspiring to give city jobs as political favors. Daley was AxelrodÂ’s client at the time.

But let's not examine the Culture of Corruption Obama springs from to give context to the story.

One Man's Crime. That's all it is. No larger message here.

The real news? Obama's innocent.

rick question: what was the stop-the-presses news coming out of the Windy City yesterday?

Nope, it wasn’t that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was arrested for corruption–for, inter alia, attempting to sell Barack Obama’s soon-to-be-vacant Senate seat (which by state law is in the governor’s gift), attempting to get editorial writers for the Chicago Tribune who were critical of him sacked, and attempting to shake down various companies that had contracts with the state. That was not so much news as a longstanding tradition in what wags are now calling “Crook County,” Illinois.

The real news was that BARACK OBAMA HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. It is not my regular practice to listen to NPR, but I happened to catch a bit of “All Left Things Considered” yesterday afternoon and the news from Chicago got a thorough airing. Sure, the name Rod Blagojevich came into the story, but each announcer in turn tripped over himself to assure the audience that BARACK OBAMA HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.

It was pretty funny, actually, to listen as these chaps who had labored so hard to help Obama get elected instantly closed ranks under the sign reading “presumed innocent.” Quoth one NPR announcer: It was nothing like Whitewater, a scandal that shadowed the Clintons for so many years. (But nota bene: if you go check out the MSM’s reporting on Whitewater back when it mattered, you’ll find that, according to them, Whitewater was basically a plot cooked up by the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy to discredit the Clintons.)

Did Obama have anything to do with Blago's latest "crime spree of corruption," while Obama was running for President and Blago was politically radioactive and under investigation by a head-hunting and headline-hunting US Attorney? Almost certainly not.

Did Obama have play the corrupt Chicago political game with Blago prior to the past two years? Open question, but given Obama had no problem making deals with the blazingly corrupt Tony Rezko, it seems likely.

Will the MSM look into this? Of course not. Their mission is to bury the truth, not discover it.

The Obama Rule seems to be that he need only spend a short time "distancing" himself from his shady past associates and, as if blessed by Jesus, he is absolved of all prior political sins.

Posted by: Ace at 10:14 AM | Comments (41)
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Slubog's cool-ass Blagoskull added [ace]

And what did "an associate of Senate Candidate #5" allegedly offer to raise for Blagojevich if he got Obama's old Senate seat? A cool one milllllllion dollars!

Senate Candidate #5" played a key role in the Governor's efforts to obtain something of value in exchange for the Senate appointment, according to the FBI affidavit.

According to the affidavit, Blagojevich threatened to appoint Senate Candidate #5 if President-elect Barack Obama refused to help get his wife on "paid corporate boards right now."

"If they feel like they can do this and not f***ing give me anythingÂ…then I'll f***ing go [Senate Candidate 5}."

The FBI says in an October 31, 2008 conversation, Blagojevich described an approach from an associate of Senate Candidate 5: "We were approached 'pay to play.' That, you know, he'd raise me 500 grand. An emissary came. Then the other guy would raise a million, if I mad him (Senate Candidate 5) a Senator."

Last Thursday, December 4, the FBI says Blagojevich "was giving Senate Candidate 5 greater consideration for the Senate seat" because he might "get some (money) up front, maybe."

Blagojevich met with Congressman Jackson Jr. Monday afternoon and said he was close to making a decision about who he would appoint.

The Governor was arrested by the FBI early the following morning in order to "stop a crime spree," according to U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.

Jackson Jr. says he was told he's not the target of "this" investigation and would take prosecutors up on their offer to talk about what he knows "as quickly as possible" after he chats with a lawyer.

Oh my, we're really going to get a guided tour of the sewer that is politics in Chicago. More precisely, Democratic politics of the home base of the new Democratic President.

Popcorn! Get yer popcorn!

Don't forget Blago hasn't started naming names yet. I don't know about you but Governor "Pay to Play" doesn't strike me as the kind of guy ready to do lots of hard time to protect others when there's a deal to be cut (not enough hair care products in the federal pen). I'd bet Fitzma Claus is going to want something he doesn't already have on tape to make that happen.

I hope somebody is getting that damn bus warmed up, it's going to be busy.

From the one, the only Slublog...Senate Candidate #5 got his lawyer, they may meet with Fitz as early as Friday.

*I cleaned up the first sentence to make it clear the complaint says it wasn't "Senate Candidate #5" who personally made the offer to the Governor.

Posted by: DrewM at 07:47 AM | Comments (159)
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I don't think many people believe that Axelrod merely "mispoke" when he said Obama and Blagojevich had been in contact about his Senate seat. But I don't expect the media to do much follow-up. Fortunately, Jim Lindgren has put together an interesting timeline which seems to indicate that Obama, or someone highly placed on his staff, knew something was up.

As Lindgren cautions, "it's not the crime; it's the coverup."

Posted by: Gabriel Malor at 05:31 AM | Comments (79)
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Posted by: Gabriel Malor at 05:13 AM | Comments (35)
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I'm a giver.

Oh, uh, this is NSFW. more...

Posted by: Gabriel Malor at 06:45 PM | Comments (69)
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Unclear on the concept.

President-elect Barack Obama said on Tuesday attacking global climate change is a "matter of urgency" that will create jobs as he got advice from Al Gore, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the issue.

In remarks to reporters, Obama made clear he would adopt an aggressive approach to global warming when he takes over the White House on January 20.

Nonsense peppered with supportive economic arguments, fighting climate change will be "good for the economy" and "create jobs". In case you weren't convinced this dire threat to our "national security" ought to be confronted with all appropriate urgency.

It's the magical trifecta.

We have the opportunity now to create jobs all across this country, in all 50 states, to re-power America, to redesign how we use energy, to think about how we are increasing efficiency, to make our economy stronger, make us more safe, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and make us competitive for decades to come, even as we're saving the planet," Obama said.

We'll create jobs (federal), re-power ourselves (pixy dust), redesign our energy use (stop using it), think (think), strengthen our economy (tax it), be safer (ignore actual threats), reduce our dependence on foreign oil (see stop using it) make us more competitive (ignorant) AND save the planet.

All that and more. Now what would you pay?

Posted by: Dave in Texas at 06:42 PM | Comments (82)
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Cutting him loose, covering his ass, putting some distance.

"The General Assembly should enact a law as quickly as possible calling for a special election to fill the Senate vacancy of Barack Obama. No appointment by this governor could produce a credible replacement,"

Posted by: Purple Avenger at 03:50 PM | Comments (65)
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I don't know why this old movie came to mind while I was listening to news reports on the arrest of the Governor of Illinois this morning, but the 1995 HBO movie "Truman" has been in my thoughts today. It's not good enough to run out and spend money on a copy of this movie, but if you're a history buff, consider putting it in your Netflix queue.

Essentially, it was a biopic of President Harry Truman. What was unusual about this movie for me was it's focus on his pre-Washington ties to the political machine back in Independence, Missouri. In one scene, Gary Sinise (who did a pretty good job as Truman, IMHO) goes back to Missouri to visit his old political patron, played by character actor extrordinaire Pat Hingle. The old man is under fire for corruption, but he understands that Truman can't help him out of his jam without putting the kibosh on his own career. The old man gives Truman his blessing and allows "Give 'Em Hell Harry" to toss him under the bus for the good of the country. It makes you think: Will Governor Blawhassisname be as gracious to The One True Lightworker when the wolves are breathing down his neck? No, I don't think so either. Neither party is exactly the heir to Truman's Democratic legacy.

I'm not a huge Truman fan, but I believe he was a decent man who tried to do the right thing the whole time he served his country. Henry Wallace, FDR's prior vice-president, grew up near Orient, Iowa which is only about 20 miles from where I grew up near Winterset. Instead of feeling that a fellow good ol' Iowa boy got cheated out of being president after FDR died in office, I thank God that one of Stalin's "Useful Idiots" was replaced on the Presidential ticket by a decent man who had the testicular fortitude to use The Bomb and avoid millions of casualties among both American Servicemen AND Japanese Civilians.

Harry Truman was a Democrat, but the Pelosis, Reeds and Schumers of today's Democratic Party would abso-freakin-lutely give him the Lieberman treatment if he were running for office today. And Governor "shake down the children's hospital....for the children"? Not only couldn't he carry Harry Truman's jockstrap, but he's not even worthy to scrub the toilets at the Harry Truman Presidential Library. The present state of the Democratic Party makes me think of what another American President once said about the political party that will soon control two of our three branches of government:

"I didn't leave the Democratic Party. They left me."

Posted by: Russ from Winterset at 03:31 PM | Comments (27)
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