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The White House announced a $17.4 billion rescue package for the troubled Detroit auto makers that allows them to avoid bankruptcy and leaves many of the big decisions for the incoming Obama administration. . . .Michelle Malkin: "What part of 'It's illegal' doesn't Bush understand?" Really. If Glenn Greenwald wants to prosecute Bush now, why should any conservative object?
"In the midst of a financial crisis...allowing the U.S. auto industry to collapse is not a responsible course of action," Mr. Bush said.
UPDATE: John Berlau of the Competitive Enterprise Institute:
"The deal does nothing to remove government impediments to what could be the most effective step for the auto companies to avert a collapse: a merger between Chrysler and General Motors. Experts have said that even in the companies' dire straits, antitrust laws may serve as severe obstacles to a merger, based on outdated methods of measuring market 'domination.' The Detroit News reported that a merger review would take at least a year, effectively putting it off the table. If the government really wanted to make the companies viable, they would immediately suspend antitrust rules to allow a merger to take place."Another example of the unexamined alternatives to throwing money at the problem. It's obvious that the Bush administration isn't even paying attention to free-market advocates anymore.
In some ways I hope they do not merge, as it would dilute certain brands in the process. GM, at least to me, has a very poor brand identity in that their products are all the same, just with different badging and pricing structures. Their products lack soul, but then I grew up during the muscle car era, so my perspective will be different.
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