BeachRider

GM: What Its Progress Report Doesn't Say

I am not comfortable with this author flipping-off the potential for the taxpayers to get their money back. A lot of people said that about the Bank TARP and they have silently been proven wrong (there were some losses, but the gains prevailed). We need to keep GM's feet to the fire to see that we get the Automotive TARP back. GM doesn't have to hit 100-for-100 for that to happen (and they won't).
The TARP wasn't intended as a giveaway, just a bridge-loan the resulted in taxpayer ownership. The credit markets had seized and the unnecessary labor-loss that would have spiraled the US economy downward was avoided.
Even with the TARP, there has been substantial labor-loss (unemployment in Detroit is about 35%). Killing off Pontiac and Saturn (and liquidating Hummer and Opel) have saved monstrous operating cost at GM. We need to be diligent. We need to ignore those folks that advise that the money is already lost.