Dakota Beacon

Is anyone really surprised at the takeover of Chrysler and General Motors by the federal government? There should be no surprise.
As early as the 1970s Chrysler was receiving federal bailout money. Does anyone remember when Chrysler nearly filed for bankruptcy back in 1979 and Lee Iacocca pulled it back from the brink? Oh yes, there were huge government subsidies even then along with calls for a federal takeover.
The transfer of wealth from the owners to the employees with government assistance and with partial government ownership concludes years of effort. Federal money and restrictions on competition allowed Chrysler to survive. This effort culminated with the UAW owning 55% of Chrysler and 39% of GM. The federal government will own part of Chrysler and most of GM.
What was not foreseen, however, was the creation of a system of so-called “czars” and the statist-style centralization of power. The elite few decide what’s best for the many. This is how statist governments work.
Our Executive Branch of government is quickly becoming a quilt work of individual White House Staff appointees not confirmed by congress and answerable to no one except President Obama. They control access by the cabinet to the president. “Czar” is an appropriate designation. It took the Russians 300 years to produce 18 czars but only 100 days for Obama to produce 21. We have a Border Czar, a Regulatory Czar, a Green Czar, a Weather Czar, an Urban Czar and the list goes on. Of course we have the Car Czar in the form of Steve Rattner.
Can Car Czar Rattner, 56 year-old Democrat fund-raiser and former hedge fund manager, really rev up Chrysler and GM? As Obama’s pick to oversee the restructuring of Chrysler and GM, he is the one calling the shots.
Assisting Rattner is Bankruptcy Czar Brian Deese. Mr. Deese, a 31 year-old from Boston, has no formal economics or business training. He hasn’t even set foot inside an auto assembly plant. Yet, as an Obama campaign worker and loyalist, he is in charge of dismantling Chrysler and GM and restructuring them. The kid is setting the rules for the new “statist capitalism.”
Combine short memories with political doublespeak from Pollyanna politicians and—viola! The leftward drift of America becomes reality.
But, will statism applied to the auto industry work? The short answer is probably not. It didn’t work in the countries in which it was tried over the last century. Why would it work now? Alternatively, this move appears to be a deliberate consolidation of Obama’s power grab.
As part of its restructuring plan to remain in business, Chrysler announced it will terminate 25% of US dealership of which seven were initially in North Dakota. Predictably, incensed senators called for hearings into dealership closures. A lot of good that’s going to do when senators are impotent compared to the czars. Hearings are a vain attempt by senators to pull the wool over the public’s eyes in hopes of having them believe the senators are “doing something.” If senators want to hold hearings, they should subpoena the Car Czar and his task force. The Executive Branch took over and they’re the ones in control. Ultimately, the decision is up to US Bankruptcy Court Judge Arthur Gonzales. So far, he concurs with Chrysler.
In a more honest age we would call these takeovers economic fascism. Today we call them reconstructing America.
It’s obvious there is no exit strategy that will move the government out of ownership of Chrysler, GM or any other business taken over by the feds. The opposite is more likely. The parasite state-run economy will be looking for a new host.
As the saying goes, “You pays your money and takes your choice.” America chose “Hope and Change” and we’ll be paying the bill for generations to come.

Dennis M. Patrick can be contacted at P. O. Box 337, Stanley, ND 58784 or (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).