The U.S. Should Have Let Chrysler Fail and Saved $1.3 Billion

According to this, the U.S. lost $1.3 billion in the Chyrsler bailout.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. taxpayers likely lost $1.3 billion in the government bailout of Chrysler, the Treasury Department announced Thursday.

The government recently sold its remaining 6% stake in the company to Italian automaker Fiat, wrapping up the 2009 auto bailouts that were part of TARP.

Let me repeat, the U.S. TAXPAYERS GAVE AWAY $1.3 billion to a failing company!

For those of you who say the U.S. should get out of the wars we are in because other things can be done with the money, what about this?

Comments

[Michael R. Hicks]

$1.3 billion is a drop in the bucket if it means keeping tens of thousands of workers on the job and off unemployment and if Chrysler has shown profitability again (which I believe they have according to their quarterly reports).

C'mon Ed...really? After hundreds of billions of dollars have been given to Citi, Goldman Sachs, et. al. and the Fed on top of that have used the strokes of keys to literally "print" TRILLIONS of dollars out of thin air to banks...only for them to give their executives fat bonuses yet still refuse to lend at rates that could better free up our economy...you're going to grouse about the loss of $1.3 billion (about four bucks and change per American) that has kept thousands of American citizens working? Really?

[DarkStar]

$1.3 billion is a drop in the bucket if it means keeping tens of thousands of workers on the job and off unemployment and if Chrysler has shown profitability again (which I believe they have according to their quarterly reports).

Fiat now owns Chrysler. Since Fiat wanted back into the U.S. market, who is to say they wouldn't have done it anyway?

you're going to grouse about the loss of $1.3 billion (about four bucks and change per American) that has kept thousands of American citizens working? Really?

Yes and I'll say it again. Those folks belong in jail.

[MIB]

We've been over this before: allowing Chrysler (or GM) to fail was not an option.

What took place with both firms was essentially a controlled bankruptcy. No firm was likely to bid for Chrysler without the U.S. gov't -- taxpayers -- forcing the liquidation of parts of the company for pennies on the dollar. Remember... the U.S. auto industry wasn't necessarily injured by its poor decisions as much as the freeze on credit.

I agree there are persons in the financial sector who looted the country leading up to 2007-08. The problem is they were enabled by elected officials we elected. Hence, they were acting lawfully. It's time to move on.

[Michael R. Hicks]

Which folks belong in jail?

There's a LOT of people in the subprime lending industry that should be prosecuted for unsavory up to illegal practices that led to the bubble that burst.

It annoys me that we scream for accountability from the "little fish" and cut them NO SLACK while we allow for a second set of rules for the highly monied folks.