Romney: Earlier GM bankruptcy would have saved billions for taxpayers

Should have elected Romdogg. Neither Bush nor Obama understand economics at all.

Can I borrow a couple of billion and not have to pay it back...??

Help me here, wasn't Romney's father head of American Motors? A firm that no longer exists due to errors of product design? That being the case, what does Romney have to tell us about the economics of an auto company, other than that Mitt is running for President again. Who cares? He was rejected once, he will be again. In the meantime his advice to our nation is duly noted and is taken for what it is and what it is not. It is political gamesmanship, it is not informed advice.

Sounds like a big bunch of sour grapes Mitt! Boo-hoo, better luck next time slicko.

I knew it!! Sure, bail them out! But who's buying cars these days? If no one is buying cars, GM will still end up at square one despite their bailout. That is common sense, right?

If only the government would give each 2007 tax payer $100,000 each, GM would not be in this position. Imagine all the money that would be flowing. Mortgages could be paid, banks would get their money, outstanding loans would get paid off if not paid down, individuals would be investing in the various markets and themselves and I personally would buy his and hers matching Pontiac G8s for my wife and I. I love that car.....I just can't afford it right now.

@ Arthur: what?? All he did was state facts. The Bush and Obama administrations gave billions of dollars to GM so it wouldn't go into bankruptcy. Now GM is in bankruptcy. Had they allowed them to go into bankruptcy from the beginning it would have saved us money, and GM wasted months as they spiraled down to this place. It's a shame when you dismiss facts as politicizing.

And his 'business acumen' with the Olympics was largely getting many additional millions from the Feds; the hated Federal Government is what saved the Utah Olympics.

Monday morning quarterbacking is easy, Mitt. Stuff it.

Arthur,
His dad was also the Governor of Michigan. Mitt was old enough and learned from his dad the complexities of not only the auto world but economics overall. His career has been to go into failing companies and fix them. He may just know what he's talking about here.
On another note, I work for a GM dealer. The general manager used to be on the GM national board. Even he has stated that Romney is right. A directed bankruptcy like Delta went through was a much better option then the bailouts.

Well, I am no fan of Romney, but as a fiscal conservative I have to say he's right. GM has been f*cked for some time now, the attempts to rescue it by Bush were just plain stupid. It was perfectly well known that that money would not save GM.

Unfortunately Bush succumbed to the same stupid ideas used in the Bank bailouts. The govt. should supply money to private businesses with no guarantee of repayment, just because the company is too big. And in the end, all we get is bankruptcy anyway, but this time with worse results and more money down the drain. Yay!

GM now stands for Government Motors. it is owened jointly by the socialist regimes in the US and Canada, 60%, and 17.5% respectively. Coming in third is the united auto workers union. And finally in dead last are the bond holders who were entitled to full restitution of their investment upon divestment of GM properties once GM filed for bankruptcy. Who failed to finish, the shareholders! They got nothing as they should have when a company files for bankruptcy. Obama's complete lack of respect for the law in forcing out the former CEO of GM and then forcing bondholders to accept 29 cents on the dollar of what they were owed is not only unlawful, it is adding one more reason this country is heading towards civil war. There are liberals and There are Americans, but the are NO Liberal Americans!

If the nation listen to Romneys advise we will all be not talking about Chrysler,GM,Wall Street,Banks and Insurance companies failure.The problem with some people is pretending to be intelligent or smart enough to make decisions that is beyond their intellect.Decisions that requires enough executive and managerial skills and experiences from a lifelong careers in making those kinds of decisions and choices that benefit the masses and not the few.And I think this is where Obama makes critical mistakes in trying to pretend he can manage these corporations and bussinesses as a politician but it doesn't fit his skills and experiences. He should have run businesses or take more time to work in companies and work his way up to be an executive before running for President.It is one thing to want to be President of the United States and another thing to be intelligent enough to make decisions that is supportive of every individuals in this country.

Arthur - Mitt knows the Government shouldn't be bailing out ANYONE. The strong survive, the weak die. Its called Capitalism - and what made this country great.

If companies operated under the presumption they may die if not smart then they would make better decisions. But the American taxpayers is always there to share in their debt, never their profits.

What Bush and Obama did bailing out these companies is called 'Socialism'

Romney should have been president. It's too bad it is a popularity contest instead of a credentials contest. And yes, we all know everything he is saying today is for his re-running in 2012. So what if it is? I love how people seem to critize that. You would do the same.

Romney's biggest mistake is that he is not a polished phony politician. So I guess he'll need to work on that to win the hearts of In-Touch magazine fans. He's a no bs businessman that can produce results. That's what we need.

I wonder what his prescription would be if he were standing in front of a bunch of UAW workers

Arthur should do his homework. Romney's Father was responsible for turning the company around in the 50s. Lefties should be pleased that among other things Romney pushed smaller fuel efficient cars.

Never trust a Republican with the Nations Defense or the Economy. Their extreme ideological approach blinds them to practical solutions. Romney will never be President but he does have great hair.

Amazing that the media has not picked up on the fact that we wasted all that money. The Republicans have nothing to worry about. 4 years of this type of crap should do the trick. We will be begging for conservitive policy soon enough.

Multiple Mitt making a speech...who cares.

Tomorrow he'll change his mind.

Sorry, Arthur, but your info is bad. Yes AMC went out of business, but long after George Romney had left the business. In fact, they had their most successful years under his leadership.

to # 3:
Yes his dad was head of AMC. He resigned in 1962 (to run for Governor of Michigan) leaving a company that was a- highly profitable, b- debt free, and c- pioneering the development of fuel-efficient quality automobiles. AMC's woes began around 1970, long after George Romney had left.
You're welcome. Perhaps you can now "help me here" and tell me what business, auto or any kind, Barry Saetoro has ever run successfully. Or unsuccessfully for that matter. Incidentally, if you're standing inside his house, you should refrain from throwing stones marked "political gamesmanship". You'll find that today's White House is made of glass in that context.

Arthut. Mitt Romney is one of the few people who if elected can revive America. It was VERY stupid on behalf of Republicans not to vote for him in primaries. He's one of the most qualified cadidates ever. It is time that America to be run as a business and not a giant socialist re-distribution joint. It will be a sad, sad and I would say propably the day when we can bury the good old USA for good if next election Romeny will not be elected.

Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

Just because his father ran a now-defunct automobile company doesn't make Romney as expert in the field. And this "son of Detroit" has several homes, but none of them are in Michigan. Hey, my father was in executive in the cigar industry in Tampa and I've lived in Boston for 30 years. Should I be considered an expert on tobacco? But, obviously, Joseph Williams is enamored with Mr. Chameleon.

I trust Mitt on matters of coiffure. On everything else he is full of manure.

It is famously hard to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, which is essentially what is being attempted with bankrupt GM. Romney might have a point that a less politically controlled bankruptcy last fall might have put the company in a less weak position today. Of course, last fall was in the middle of a panic and a presidential election. I don't remember any politicians standing up to suggest that nature be allowed to take its course. It's somewhat disingenuous of Romney to be saying this now.

As it is, the bankruptcy of both Chrysler and GM seem awfully tilted in favor of the UAW at the expense of everyone else including the tax payer. If it all pans out, so much the better for all concerned (except share-and to a lesser extent bond-holders). But if either or both firms go under again or require yet a third multi-billion tax-dollar bailout, the political chickens will come home to roost for team Obama with a vengeance. At least I hope so.

Arthur, You are totally Right. Mitt is full of it. As a matter of fact Mitt was on the record praising Obama’s “backbone” in regard to GM. And now he's saying “I told you so”? Are you kidding me Mitt? He has no credibility. What a jerk.

Why isn't Romney talking about the Trillions Bush and Obama wasted bailing out the failed banks and not letting them fail. Oh that's right we can give Welfare to rich people but we can't do anything to save working men and women. That would be Socialism.

Alas Romney and many people on this board fail to recognize the double standard.

and a Romney presidency would have saved us billions too.

Ths whole thing is laughable, we are GIVING another $50 BILLION to GM and Barack and his eco-geniuses claim that we the taxpayers will eventually earn a return on that money. In its heyday, the market cap of GM was not much more than $50 Billion so how do you expect to get a positive return on a dead ass company that makes cappy cars( except my Suburbans which I have loved over the years)
Hell, lets revive FW Woolworth and given them billions too. Maybe they can come back to Downtown Crossing and be the first retail tenant in the big hole in the ground that used to be Filenes. Maybe Filenses derserves a shot in the arm too.
You miss Easterm Airlines, so do I. Well no problem cause is they have a uinion then Barack will breath billions into them too. Why not.

Goo, this make me crazy.

50 Billion dollars is a 5 with 10 zeros after it, is the amount the US taxpayers are investing in GM. It is safe to say at least 1 million ( a 1 with six zeros after it) people and jobs would be affected if GM would cease operations. Simple math dictates 50 billion/ 1 million people is a lump sum of $50,000, about one year's salary for an autoworker, or less. If we gave all those workers a "tax break" or lump sum payment it would only sustain them one year. The logic behind the bailout makes sense. If the company survives, so do most of its employee's and associated businesses who would continue to pay taxes year after year and support the rest of our nation's economy.

Go crawl back under your rock, Mitt. You were an embarrassment as a candidate for Senate in 1994, you were a disaster as governor from 2002-2006, and you were an incompetent and a fraud as a Republican presidential candidate in 2008. And, by the way, Mitt, how come you claimed to be a MA resident in 2002 when you ran for governor here, but you were really living in Utah and a Utah resident? Maybe because you cheated on your taxes here? What's the truth, Mitt? Are you nothing more than a millionaire tax cheat? Come clean, Mitt, because it is going to come up again and again if you are a candidate in 2012. Hopefully, we'll hear that the IRS and Mass DOR is conducting a joint investigation soon. Until then, please go slither back under your rock.

What?!!! It was Romney who stood in front of the auto workers back during the campaign and said "We can save your jobs. Let's just all sit down and negotiate through this." It was McCain who said the auto industry was on its last legs, and that the workers should realize that and that the government should help them get retrained. It was Romney and others from both sides of the aisles who wanted to save GM, as evidenced by a Repub (Bush) and a Dem (Obama). Romney is two-faced, constantly revising his own statements and history to fit the way the wind is blowing.

Mitt the flipper has flipped again.

Why does anyone pay any attention to anything this guy says? Two stories with his name on it in one day? His PR team is on overtime.

Funny. I don't recall Romney saying that we should let the crooked banks go into directed bankruptcy, thereby saving the taxpayer hundreds of billions of dollars. Of course, the banksters involved often made between hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of dollars each out of swindling the public, which must surely have warmed the heart of a venture capitalist like Romney. And a great many of them did so while paying taxes at rates far far lower than the mom-and-pop Bill and Helen of Rocco's House of Pizza do while working 60-70 hours a week EACH.

But then, Utah resident Mitt Romney is notoriously great at talking out of all sides of his mouth. (Oops. Even though he was able to get the taxpayer to bail out the Salt Lake City, he realized that even his fellow Mormons wouldn't want him as governor. So he "remembered" that he actually lived in Massachusetts. Unless he now lives in New Hampshire.)

He should have been press....

What is so frustrating about this whole thing is that we all knew months ago that the best course of action was for GM to go into bankruptcy. Now we have wasted $50 billion dollars!! As a gov't employee, I can tell you that my employer will screw this whole thing up and waste even more money. And the UAW will gladly help them with that!

Mitt..... pandering to the GOP Conservatives
It did not work last time and the very same for the next time!!
He is NOT a true conservative and getting bad political advice on this

It's really funny how noone that disagrees with Romney gives any other reason except for personal attacks and fabricated "facts" that shed him personally in a negative light. There's not one comment that gives a compelling reason why he's wrong. Could it be...because he's right? Like him or not, you know he is.

Comment #11 gets a little provocative, but one main point of his entry is worth repeating: how can the Obama Administration flout traditional bankruptcy law and allow the Unions' unsecured claims to supercede the claims of Senior lenders? Since when has law ceased to be about observing precedent? When you defy well-established precedent, you remove the element of fairness in the application of the law . Obama's move here may or may not be illegal, but it is certainly unethical, and should be stricken down by any self-respecting bankruptcy judge.

# 14 boston234
You sound like a spoil rich individual that care less about the poor in this country.This is the problem in this country is liberal pretending to be on the side of the poor but in reality they use the poor and gain from them Holywood is a good example.