The prepared testimony from today’s House Financial Services Committee hearing, “Stabilizing the Financial Condition of the American Automobile Industry.”

Panel 2

• Mr. G. Richard Wagoner, Jr., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, General Motors Corporation
• Mr. Robert Nardelli, Chief Executive Officer, Chrysler, LLC.
• Mr. Alan Mulally, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ford Motor Company
• Mr. Ron Gettelfinger, President, United Auto Workers 

Panel 3

• Mrs. Annette Sykora, Chairman, National Automobile Dealers Association
• Mr. James S. McElya, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Cooper-Standard Automotive, Inc.
• Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director, The Earth Institute; Quetelet Professor of Sustainable Development and Professor of Health Policy and Management, Columbia University
• Dr. Matthew J. Slaughter, Professor of International Economics, Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College

And relevant coverage..

• Big Three press bailout case for second day
  MarketWatch - 54 minutes ago
  If the domestic auto industry were allowed to fail, Wagoner said, “the societal costs would be catastrophic.” Congress is in a lame-duck session in part to …
• Democrats seek to lower expectations for bailout
  The Associated Press - 1 hour ago
  CEO Rick Wagoner told the House Financial Services Committee that collapse of the US auto industry could lead to a loss of 3 million jobs within the first …
• Jockeying Continues Over Aid to US Auto Industry
  CQPolitics.com, DC - 1 hour ago
  By Joseph J. Schatz and David Clarke, CQ Staff The Senate’s top Democrat Wednesday sought to shift the burden of helping the auto industry onto the White …
• Senate seeks compromise on auto bailout as CEOs testify for a 2nd day
  USA Today - 1 hour ago
  “There is a way forward that will help protect the jobs in the auto industry, while also protecting taxpayers,” McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said. ..

The latter refers to a statement made by Minority Leader McConnell, “A Bipartisan Path Forward to Protect Jobs, Taxpayers“:

So let me suggest a bipartisan path forward that has not yet been offered by the majority. It’s a compromise being worked on by Senators Voinovich and Bond which repurposes funds already appropriated by this Congress to fund a $25 billion loan program for automakers to build advanced technology vehicles—coupled with new taxpayer protections and federal oversight of how the money is spent. This is a proposal which I believe has support from both sides of the aisle, and that actually has the potential to pass right now—not next year.

A modest and appropropriate marking of a legislative victory.

From a transcript of a news conference with Senate Republicans today on energy, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) leading off:

MCCONNELL:  OK.  Well, thanks for joining us this morning.  We thought it was a good time to pause and celebrate an extraordinary accomplishment.

As all of you know, the biggest issue for the last six months has been the price of gas at the pump.  Some months back, 44 Republicans came together behind a bill we call the Gas Price Reduction Act, which did three or four things, three of which have been now accomplished. We advocated lifting the offshore moratorium on drilling.  We advocated lifting the moratorium on oil shale development.  And we advocated incentives for battery-driven cars.  Not that we thought that was every solution, but a good first step.

All three of those things have been accomplished, either already accomplished in the Senate with the passage of the energy extenders bill, or shortly will be accomplished when we pass the continuing resolution, because, as all of you know, both those moratoria have been lifted.

So we’re here today to celebrate this accomplishment, to thank the American people for literally sweeping over Congress with their public opinion and demanding this result.   

But also adding one cautionary note:  You get the impression in listening to the majority that it is their intent to restore these moratoria at a later time this year.   

We don’t think the American people will like that, if that’s what they intend to do.  We think they’ve made a good decision in taking these moratoria out of the continuing resolution.  We think it’d be widely applauded by the American people.  And some effort to sort of thumb your nose at public opinion as soon as the inconvenience of the election gets out of the way strikes us as not being very responsible in our democracy.

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Yesterday several leading Senators held a press conference in the Capitol with business leaders to warn about the consequences of the misnamed Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA). The Senators who participated (including Sens. Hatch, Enzi, Ensign and Senate Republican Leader McConnell) highlighted some of the lesser known provisions in the bill, such as binding arbitration.

Senator Hatch declared the EFCA ,: “… one of the most heinous pieces of legislation in history,” Hatch also pointed out one of the unfortunate realities of card check systems , i.e “These union organizers will keep coming back until you sign the card. Some people just sign the card to get rid of them.”

Senator Enzi explained that EFCA would lead to federally appointed arbitrators actually setting  wages, pension and health care benefits, work hours and other terms. The Senator said:

“If we adopt this bill, labor and management will no longer negotiate most new contracts and third parties will decide all the important issues such as pay, hours, benefits and working conditions.”

Under EFCA,  bureaucrats from Washington would have unchecked power to impose a two-year binding contract, one that would not even allow the employees to ratify it or approve its terms. Government knows best?  Not when it comes to running your own business.