Yeah, yeah, yeah, but what about the rug?

The man really does want to be known as the most petulant 3 year old ever to hold the office. Doesn't he realize that we're (1) in the middle of a real crisis and (2) he has zero leverage to cut deals?

If he wants to play games and try to drive that disapproval rating up over 80% more power to him. It's not even like using the threat of veto on the stimulus package to get CAFTA passed is the crappiest thing he's done while in office. It's just one more "F-you" to the public that we can add to his tally while we try to figure out whether he's the worst president yet, or if Buchanan still beats him out for that title.

Bush is only interested in furnishing the little rooms inside his head. After January 20, he can do so to his little marble heart's content, without wasting my tax dollars to do it.

Probably just as well that Obama realize early that nothing of substance is going to happen when he deals with this buffoon. That way he can spend his energy crafting real solutions and preparing to implement them after Bush is gone.

But won't free trade with Columbia provide an economic lift and help solve the financial crisis? (snark)

Worst president ever. When can we arrest him and throw him in jail?

Jesus. What is so incredibly important about free trade with Colombia? This is just more petulance from that weakass idiot.

Narcissistic prick from start to finish. Good riddance

Oh yes! A depression in the US is going to be so good for our trade with Columbia.

The weapon of mass destruction really is in the oval office. Bush is completing Osama's mission and further fouling the nest for Obama.

Better to let Bush wander off before trying to create a competitive auto industry. Name one initiative he has gotten right. Letting him, and his team, set the agenda for recreating a competitive auto industry is almost certain to once again enrich plutocrats, politicize the distribution of government support, and point the wrong direction. For example, I listened to some Republican talking points on this last night, during which I heard the talking head say, the first thing to do is relax the cafe standards and allow more off-shore production of the more fuel efficient cars Detroit is designing. That must have sounded good to someone, but it's the last thing I want my government to encourage. Obama has enough Bush policies and initiatives to reverse.

Is there a single human being on planet Earth that thinks GM can be a contender for the long haul if it gets just a little money?

The problem with Medicare is that it sinks small fortunes into the last year of a dying person's life. Herculean efforts to save hopelessly terminal patients is an understandable, but questionable use of money which is made inexcusably exponentially worse when the patient is a company and not a human.

GM is on life support, the brain is dead, and we are the distraught family refusing to pull the plug.

Companies like Tesla Motors and Ronn Motors that are producing beautiful, innovative, useful alternative vehicles might be the salvation of American automotive know how if they had a small portion of the proposed bailouts of R&D funding.

Alas, they don't have lobbyists to convince the grieving family that just a few more months and grandma will be tap-dancing and singing again.

People and companies eventually die. Don't complain to me. Death happens. It isn't my fault. Haven't we had enough of reality denial over the past 8 years, though? Are we going to engage in more of the same, just a different set of groundless beliefs?

The Big Three auto manufacturers have enough cash to last until mid-year next year. That part of the stimulus package should probably be delayed until Obama is in office, so it will be done RIGHT. Bush sees the Columbia free trade agreement as one more thing he can add to his (very questionable) legacy. In addition to labor leaders in Columbia being murdered, apparently the Columbia military and paramilitary groups are also murdering innocent civilians and claiming they are FARC members. Even going so far as to dress them up and plant weapons on them!! Screw Columbia and Bush too.

Keep packing!

Columbia is crucial.

We need to make more cocaine freely trade between us and them.

The auto industry worldwide is NOT facing the music.

No amount of cash will revive the industry as we know it.

100 mpg gas vehicles and electric cars might do it.

In other words, they had their chance. They tooled up to produce tanks for cars and joined in on Wall Street's pyramid scheme to hell.

I say give cash to the auto giants IF they agree to my demands... 100mpg cars and an electric fleet.

Bush wants this deal for Colombia because its right wing government is his only friend in Latin America. The Big Three are a slow moving trainwreck, it would be better to wait for the next Congress to address this. Last thing we want is a repeat of the hurry up and wait we got with the stupid bank bailout.

GM does not have enough cash to last till Jan 20th.

Its time to break up Detroit into millions of innovative little companies.

I thought part of the stimulus for the auto industry included provisions for startups?

Huh. I can't say that aid to the auto industry would have been on my top 10 list of agenda items for the first transition meeting. It seems like we're edging toward the slippery slope that opponents of the bailout package feared, in which government intervention is deemed warranted to save any large American corporation. Maybe a case could be made for AIG and the banks, given their central importance to the economy, but GM? I'm not seeing it. I do like Tom Nicholson's idea though-- government aid only in exchange for real improvements in efficiency and alternative energy use. Let's hope Obama will think as creatively when he's in office.

It's been acknowledged that the AIG bailout has failed. The Bush Administration has come up with a new plan - convert several hundred billion dollars to $100 bills, and then stuff these bills down all the toilets in the country.

This, they believe, will revitalize the critical plumbing industry and get our economy back on its feet.

Believe that President-Elect Obama started taking Shrub seriously, when Shrub said "If you support the Columbian deal, I'll even throw in 'the rug'."

How many commenters here (and Mr. Benem also, just to be fair) drive American vehicles? Shout out for MoTown!

(Chirp)

Thanks, I thought so.

Dislike Bush all you want, you have to admire his ability to negotiate hard. Senate Democrats should take note incorporate this negotiating style into their basic approach. They weren't elected to be door mats.

The American president says he will help Americans if the president-elect helps sway congressional allies to help him help Columbia?

Thank W.

Senate Democrats should take note incorporate this negotiating style into their basic approach. They weren't elected to be door mats.

Right -- which makes it all the more pathetic that they adopted the role all on their own.

Hopefully, the financial assistance to the auto industry will have conditions to keep them from building the same crappy cars. The money should be used to retool so they can stop building the SUV's trucks, and vans that get lousy gas mileage and provide incentives to build cars that are more fuel efficient, to research better alternative fuel technology, stop using corn for ethanol (use switchgrass or hemp instead), and design more fuel efficient engines and motors.

"Bush can use his remaining weeks in office productively," What and ruin his perfect record?

I'll buy American when they produce competetive cars. A couple of years ago I needed a fuel efficient car with lots of cargo space. All the American car companies offered were unsafe, huge SUVs that got terrible gas mileage. I'm pretty happy with my Subaru, thank you (not as fuel efficient as I would like, but the best avaiable at the time). By the way, my "foreign" car probably includes as much US labor as most "domestic" cars. I'm certainly in favor of buying American - but not to the point where American companies aren't expected to compete in the world market.

The U.S. should not be propping up companies like this. I agree with those who say we need to put some conditions on any bail out, like cars that will actually improve fuel efficiency, cut pollution, etc.

LET. GM. DIE.

We don't need yet more corporate welfare rewarding 30 years of anti-environmentalist behavior, not only on the part of the Big Three, but a fair chunk of UAW leadership as well.

What about Ruggie?

Part of the reason that we can't let GM die, event though it was managed very poorly, is that it kills one of the only viable unions out there, and also it wipes out a lot of retirees' pensions and healthcare impoverishing a lot of people rather quickly. Breaking it up is an option.

Colombia Free Trade Agreement is a reward for Colombia for the secret spying and the buid-up of armies on its borders to counter Chavez. A pet peeve of Bush.

Ruggie must die!

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Saving GM seems unlikely to work.
Letting GM die seems like a waste of resources.

Can we buy GM, cut it up into pieces, replace management and start making better cars?

It shouldn't cost much at this point.

Apparently GWB is now channeling Herbert Hoover.