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I am angry. Actually, I am incensed, livid, and enraged. On Friday, Congress will hold hearings on the Detroit bailout. I called my Congressman's office (happens to be Barney Frank) to find out what the latest is. Here is the latest (I hope you're sitting down): Congress seems to be coalesing around a proposal to give GM, Chrysler and Ford bridge loans to get them through the New Year with NO ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS ATTACHED.
That's right. For decades the Big Three have pushed around Congress, the states and environmentalists while pushing false claims that it would go out of business if it had to reduce smog or greenhouse gases or stop making gas guzzlers. Now Detroit comes begging on its knees for money, and our Congress plans to just give it to them with no environmental strings and re-visit the issue next year. What a tragedy.
Not only are there going to be no environmental conditions, but Congressman Frank, who chairs the committee leading the effort, will apparently be asking NO QUESTIONS about the litigation that GM and Chrysler are pressing against the states' greenhouse gas laws.
Why is Congress not going to simply enact -- as a condition of any bailout money -- a statute that says Judges Session in Vermont and Judge Ishii in California were right: the fuel economy law does not preempt state greenhouse gas laws? That would put an end to the lawsuits by GM and Chrysler against the laws that are now in place in 14 states covering half of our nation's population. It would remove the risk of a conservative panel of the 9th or 2d circuit courts of appeal reversing Judges Sessions or Ishii, even if people like me think we will win these appeals. It would remove the risk of the Rhode Island or New Mexico cases yielding a different result from those reached by Judges Sessions and Ishii, again even if people like me think we will win all these cases all the way through all the appeals. It seems to me that that is just a basic condition of good citizenship: don't take the taxpayers money if you cannot live with a law that terminates your litigation against half the nation's taxpayers.
Friday's hearing also seems to me to be a golden opportunity for asking questions of the Detroit CEOs like "Will you drop your lawsuits against the states in exchange for the bridge loans?" "Will you (GM) agree as a condition of the loan package to sell your intellectual property for the EV1 electric vehicle -- the vehicle that you killed and crushed under the pretence that no nones wants a plug-in electic car -- to someone else willing to build that car?" There are about a million more such questions dying to get asked.
But as far as I can tell, no one is raising the temperature on Congress to do this. No one is threatening to raise holy hell if Congress just coughs up the money with no strings. I was told a month ago that the $25 billion in fuel economy money would be appropriated without strings and "next time we'll squeeze Detroit on the Pavley law." Next time is here and no one seems to be squeezing Detroit on the Pavley law. What a tragedy.
Matthew F. Pawa
Law Offices of Matthew F. Pawa, P.C.
1280 Centre Street, Suite 230
Newton Centre, MA 02459
(617) 641-9550
(617) 641-9551 facsimile
www.pawalaw.com
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Update from Matt
Folks - Update on the fast moving Detroit bailout situation. Incredibly, Barney Frank just returned my call himself. He agreed that (1) no federal loan money should go to Detroit without enactment of a legal provision making clear that EPCA does not preempt state greenhouse gas regulations on motor vehicles that are duly adopted under the Clean Air Act and further that he will talk to the Speaker about that; (2) he will ask questions of the CEOs or other company witnesses on Friday about whether they would drop the lawsuits as part of the federal loan package deal; and (3) he will ask questions of the Wagoner about the EV1, in particular, whether GM sell its EV1 intellectual property to another company to make that vehicle as part of federal loan deal. I sure hope that this is not just a politician telling me what I want to hear. I am drafting questions for him now. We shall see. Please keep up the pressure - I am loving all the responses I am getting from many of you. We shall overcome. Matt
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"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical world." - Thomas Jefferson
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Please add this to your Facebook, blog, webpage, what-have-you
http://www.house.gov/writerep/ Similar to Matthew F. Pawa, above, I am pretty disturbed about this turn of events. If you also feel that the bailout of US automakers is a horrible Congressional decision PLEASE CONTACT your representatives. Look here! http://www.house.gov/writerep/ Just visit this web page and find your rep. Then call and leave them a message. Simple. Your voice. GO!
Action planned in DC!
The Chesapeake Climate Action Network, supported by Rainforest Action Network, Global Exchange and the California Cars Initiative, is doing a hybrid caravan tomorrow in front of the U.S. Capitol. We're calling for no money for Detroit unless they agree to drop all the clean car lawsuits and commit to millions of plug-in hybrids within several years. Anything you can do to spread the word, particularly to people who might be able to join the action, would be appreciated. We're gathering at 12 noon at a parking lot at 4th and K Sts. NW not far from the U.S. Capitol and caravaning over to the Capitol after putting signs and streamers on our cars. As of now we've got about 25 cars lined up. Ted Glick, 240-396-2155
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"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical world." - Thomas Jefferson
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