Press secretary Dana Perino reiterated the Bush administration’s official position on offering aid to the Big Three on Monday. The White House supports assistance for the troubled automakers, but not at the expense of September’s TARP rescue package.
Stating that TARP was only ever intended to re-inject life into a crumbling credit market, Perino said, “The auto industry is an important part of our manufacturing base, and we want the industry to succeed and compete in the global economy. We believe assistance should come from the program created by Congress that was specifically designed to assist the automakers — from the $25 billion Department of Energy loan program.”
President-elect Barack Obama supports a long-term aid program for the industry, but not an immediate ‘blank-check’ bailout. Unless the undesirable practices which led to the current state are corrected, there are those of the opinion that the Big Three should be allowed to fail.
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