Senator Carl Levin reacts to auto plan
Posted: 12.15.2008 at 4:42 PM
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U.S. Senator Carl Levin says he expects President Bush's solution to help the Detroit automakers will follow the previous deal Bush reached with congressional leaders. The deal approved by the house provided loans for Chrysler and General Motors to help them survive until March 31st, but it was blocked by some Republican senators. The Michigan Democrat says the Treasury Secretary likely would become the Car Czar and oversee restructuring the automakers. Senator Levin says helping the auto industry through the tough times is essential, "while there's a lot of folks in this country who would like to look back and point out mistakes that may have been made two decades ago in the auto industry in terms of fuel economy and a few other items, as a matter of fact, from China to Brazil every auto industry in the world is having trouble and it would be unthinkable to not do what other governments are doing and support our auto industry." Senator Carl Levin says he expects GM to get $8 billion and Chrysler $7 billion under the Bush administration's plan. A Treasury Department Spokeswoman says however, no decisions have been made on what type of support to give the industry, and she did not estimate how long it may take the administration to reach a decision.