America is still fighting over President Obama's costly bailout of Chrysler and General Motors. Especially the owners of Ford, the only member of Detroit's "Big Three" who rejected the government dole and emerged perfectly healthy.
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In its most political ad in the so-called "Drive One" ads where real drivers are thrust before cameras to explain why they picked Ford, a real Ford F-150 pick-up driver is featured.
[Check out political cartoons about the economy.]
His name is Chris. After he sits down the "reporters" bark "Chris, Chris." One asks him to explain why "was buying American important to you."
Sitting and looking sincere and serious, Chris says: "I wasn't going to buy another car that was bailed out by our government. I was going to buy from a manufacturer that's standing on their own: win, lose, or draw. That's what America is about is taking the chance to succeed and understanding when you fail that you gotta' pick yourself up and go back to work. Ford is that company for me."
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A Ford spokeswoman confirmed that Chris is an actual Ford owner and that those are his real words (the ad series is all unscripted).
According to a government report, taxpayers will lose $14 billion in the bailout.
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From a June 1 Associated Press story:
WASHINGTON — Taxpayers will lose about $14 billion in the government's $80 billion bailout of Chrysler and GM, the White House said Wednesday, portraying the outcome as good news since the losses are far lower than originally anticipated.
Seizing on the figures, the Obama administration took credit for the resurgence of the U.S. auto industry, assuring taxpayers that the government's bailout of Chrysler and GM was an investment worth making.
A report by the president's National Economic Council noted that as Detroit automakers rebound, the taxpayers' loss from the bailout will be about $14 billion, or less than 20 percent of the $80 billion that the Bush and Obama administration used to prop up the companies in 2008. The Treasury Department had expected losses closer to 60 percent."
- See photos of the Obamas behind the scenes.
- Read Mary Kate Cary: Mitt Romney Was Right to Oppose the Auto Bailout.
- Check out political cartoons about the economy.
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