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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2009 > May > 14 > Entry
Brown furious about reports that GM will export from China
An Associated Press report that General MOtors may begin to export vehicles from China starting in 2011 has Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, furious, particularly because the company has accepted U.S. taxpayer dollars in an effort to stay afloat.
“What’s good for GM is no longer good for America,” Brown said in a statement Thursday, May 14. “This idea is a slap in the face to American auto workers and American taxpayers. If officials at General Motors think that U.S. taxpayers will finance cars made in China while American plants are closing, they’re either tone deaf or short-sighted.
Brown said there is “no excuse” for GM to use taxpayer funds for Chinese imports - “not when there are American workers ready to build these cars and idled U.S. auto plants prepared to produce them.”
“These funds are meant to help rebuild our nation’s middle class, not dismantle it by shipping more jobs overseas. GM must commit to using them to maintain jobs and production at home.”
An AP report said GM plans to begin exports of vehicles made in China to the United States within two years, with the goal of bringing sales to more than 50,000 by 2014. A spokeswoman for GM in China did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the reports, which were said to be based on a company recovery plan given to U.S. lawmakers.
The company is currently surviving largely because of $15.4 billion worth of loans from the U.S. government.
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By Jim
May 18, 2009 9:21 AM | Link to this
This is what happens when you pay someone $30.00 an hour plus benifits to put on trunk lids. Did your union really get you what you wanted?By Jeff
May 15, 2009 1:14 PM | Link to this
What rock has Sherrod Brown been living under? His shock about GM’s announcement is as believable as Nancy Pelosi being shocked about waterboarding. Did he actually believe US companies would stop manufacturing in China after years of building up relations and increasing production there? Building full cars in China is the next logical step. GM would gladly build cars in the USA as soon as they can pay union workers the same as they are paying Chinese workers. Why hasn’t anyone proposed that legislation? It wouldn’t hurt the economy any more than giving billions to banks, auto companies, and bogus “stimulus” projects already has.By thoth
May 15, 2009 11:46 AM | Link to this
I’d be curious what exactly they mean when they say build, that could mean anything from manufacturing parts to assembling. I can’t imagine it would actually be cheaper to assemble cars destined for the US in China. I would think if their looking to cut assembly costs they’d look to Mexico rather than China. Regardless I wonder how many people realize how much of the manufacturing process for even American car companies is done outside the US.