2008.11.25
Did you hear the one about...
...the auto industry execs eating humble pie for Thanksgiving?
According to my former colleague in Detroit and former Roanoke Times writer Daniel Howes, the Big Three dudes are planning a motor cavalcade to D.C. in a few weeks to (re)plead their case for $25 billion.
If you recall, the "clueless fat cats," as Howes labels them, took a small tsunami of flack last week for each showing up on private jets to ask for a congressional bailout. So now, some spinmeister has decided the execs should repair their image by taking a road trip from the D to D.C.
That doesn't seem to be the most efficient use of energy -- or public spin -- either. Trust me: These dudes won't be hauling tail in Geo Metros or Ford Focuses. They'll be rolling in GM's, Ford's and Chrysler's biggest SUVs (I would guess Cadillac's Escalade, Lincoln's Navigator and Dodge's Durango. Each black. Look, I'm born and raised in car country. Image is everything, and nothing says power more than a black SUV convoy.)
The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday online that Ford is exploring the sale of some of its five jets, and GM will offload two of its five. (One of my in-the-know correspondents informed me there is the security of these dudes to consider when they travel. They can't just, say, call up Southwest Airlines and book a random flight.)
But back to the road trip. As one who made that 525-mile haul many, many times going back and forth to college from 1980 to 1984, pack some snacks and get out and stretch your legs in Breezewood, Pa. Also let's all those horses under the hood catch their breath.
How about each CEO giving up their salary for a year. Surely they have enough money in the bank to able to do that.
Comment by Debbie — November 25, 2008 @ 11:50 am
"informed me there is the security of these dudes to consider when they travel."
Yes, because they're, uh, so good at what they do they're, uh, indispensable. They're so good...yep..that's why the companies are doing so, uh, well.
I'm being overly flippant, but I don't think they'd be irreplaceable. Now if they want to pay their security privately, fine. Stockholders should be aware they're currently footing the bill, though.
Comment by Ed S. — November 25, 2008 @ 6:31 pm
The fat cats want to get fatter, and these "priceless" CEOs and leaders, speak with forked tounges, but we have caught on to it. They don't like that, and so our gas goes up, and up, to make us afraid, then, after an election, it goes down, wow are we ever happy about that, and we try to undertand why the rich get the bail outs, after having all the perks for years,while John Q Citizen, wonders with no savings, no IRA, no health care, and the gloomy fate of Social Security, amd Medicare, where is his/her help? I along with others think this is all an inside job, and if car makers are bailed out, just who in the dickens can buy a new one.
Job Security, Human Rights, Welcome to my world and the world of countless others who dared get credit, trust a banker, invester, mortage company,realators who said yes yes yes, buy buy buy... Now we all poney up, don't we? And why should a CEO, or anyone think he is better than anyone else?
Comment by Dona Wheeler — November 26, 2008 @ 2:14 am
Despite the publicity aspects of it, CEO's flying in private jets is commonplace, and these three were given a bad rap for that. I even do it myself rather frequently, and I'm no CEO. The time savings and security problems usually justify private travel. CEO's need to spend every available hour trying to solve their companies' problems. That being said, what bothers me about CEO's much more than business travel on jets are their extravagant vacations/meetings paid for at shareholder and taxpayer expense and outlandish salaries and bonuses for these UNDERperforming executives. Debbie's got the right idea ... let them work for a dollar a year until things turn profitable. And the more I think about the bailout, they should have been turned down because it's bad business for government to get involved in backing private industry, not because they traveled in a jet. And the motorcade idea is a farce.
Comment by Mike — November 28, 2008 @ 4:20 am