With TARP money, of course. Or so says our man on the inside of Chrysler’s bankruptcy proceedings. And apparently the holdouts will get even more than the already TARPed bondholders. Which means that although Obama may not “stand with” the “hedge fund holdouts,” apparently he’s OK with writing them a check for their trouble(d assets). Or maybe someone in the Treasury just made the connection: the only people who aren’t playing ball in this ends-justify-the-means “bankruptcy” call themselves “The Non-TARP Bondholders.” TARP money has made everyone else compliant with Treasury’s union, so obviously the solution is to buy out the holdouts with just a little more TARP. After all, does anyone think Fiat, the UAW or the already-TARPed bondholders would be embarking on this ship of fools if government cash weren’t paying the way?
Will they be making good cars? That’s the only thing I want to know, and that’s the only question everyone should be asking. Because so far we haven’t seen anything on what the new Chrysler is planning to sell, aside from 3d renders and vague promises of Fiat 500s, and I’m inclined to think that the lineup will be the same old garbage minus some of the biggest turds.
Nothing that I’ve seen of Chrysler so far even indicates that they are capable of making good cars.
Should would make the GM negotiations more interesting if they did this!
May 2 (Bloomberg) — Chrysler LLC’s secured lenders included Yale University, Oaktree Capital Management and assets managed for the University of Kentucky, Halliburton Co., Kraft Foods Master Retirement and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a court filing in the carmaker’s bankruptcy shows.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a109vAXclorI&refer=us
Thus demonstrating that the Obama administration will not succumb to pressure unless its from the unions.
In the words of Lee Iacocca, “If you can find a bigger Troubled Asset, Buy it!”
Kinda makes one think the holdouts must have a case worth hearing, which, of course, they do. Congress is in session, and they could always streamline the rules if they think they aren’t right. OR, they could worry about college football.
Whole thing smells wrong…
GM paid $2B NOT to buy Fiat back in 2005 (When times/sales were GOOD!)
I think the whole Fiat thing is just part of the con….
A blast from the past:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/gm-pays-fiat–euro-155bn-to-escape-from-deal-483370.html
Now Fiat wants to buy Opel?
Sure feels like a last night out for a bachelor before the wedding…
Is it just me, or is Geithner, as evidenced in the Buy Tarp Bonds photo, starting to look more and more like Rick Wagoneer?
I feel better about this than having the secured hedgies screwed over in some nefarious plan orchestrated by the president. Note: I said better than the other scenario, which is still a very long way from good.
If true, I wonder if it spells the death of the good Chrysler/bad Chrysler plan.
There is the not to be hidden 800 pound gorilla in the room, who needs the weakest makers of cars? If the World has twice the needed capacity, it seems pretty hopeless to me that Chrysler will ever come back. A resurgance means taking conquest sales from competitors and at a profit. If that isn’t a daunting task, then why have no American car makers been able to do it since 2000?
Should I file this under “Screw The Rules, I Have Money!” or not?