NYT: (Gov. Granholm) Taking Down the 'No Foreign Cars' Signs in Michigan

[DeepModem Mom]

Taking Down the 'No Foreign Cars' Signs in Michigan
By DANNY HAKIM
Published: March 3, 2005


DETROIT, March 2 - At many union halls in Michigan, signs on parking lots still warn that foreign-made cars "will be towed away at owner's expense."

So why is Michigan's Democratic governor, Jennifer M. Granholm, pushing so hard to close a sweetheart land deal with Toyota Motor?

The answer: Because the domestic auto industry, the engine of the state's economy in the 20th century, is sputtering in the 21st. With 7 of Michigan's 10 largest employers either domestic automakers or parts suppliers, Michigan's unemployment hit 7.3 percent in December. That tied with Alaska's as worst in the nation, according to the most recent report from the Labor Department; numbers released by Michigan on Wednesday adjusted December's unemployment down to 7.5 percent, but showed some improvement in January.

General Motors and the Ford Motor Company, two of the state's three largest employers, said Tuesday that their sales continued to fall last month. With both company's shares trading near annual lows, they are cutting the number of cars and trucks they plan to produce. G.M.'s production cuts are particularly deep, spreading economic distress across the region. That has left Ms. Granholm little choice but to redouble the efforts to diversify, both beyond cars and towards other carmakers....

***

That includes wooing Toyota, the company that has taken more business away from the Big Three - G.M., Ford and the Chrysler division of DaimlerChrysler - than any other. Michigan is currently fighting in court to push through a deal to sell public land to Toyota that would allow the company to expand a technical center near the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. A developer who outbid Toyota by $16 million has sued to block the deal, but courts have sided with the state....


http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/03/business/03michigan.html

[GainesT1958]

1. Heck, why stop at offering 'em land for a tech center..

Get Toyota to build a full-scale PLANT there!:D

I mean, it worked for California and Kentucky...

B-)

[derby378]

2. Three words: Camry, Corolla, Prius

Not to mention the fact that many Toyotas are manufactured in a Kentucky plant.

Plus, the Corolla was given a massive American facelift, making it a more comfortable ride for even big-and-tall types. And Toyotas overall seem to be more reliable than many of their American counterparts.

We need cars, and Michigan folks need to work. Do we let the UAW folks freeze and starve, or do we give them work, dignity, and paychecks? The answer seems obvious - the Big Three dropped the ball, and Toyota picked it up. Let's roll.

[DBoon]

8. I'd support jobs for American workers

even if it means some American executives get stiffed.

A union job at Toyota is better than no job at GM.

[madrchsod]

3. toyota truck has enough parts made in the usa

to qualify in the nascar craftman truck series..shit ole darrel waltrip is their spokesman..

[realisticphish]

4. a large percentage of honda cars

are made in ohio. I think that people need to realize that these "foreign" cars aren't so foreign anymore... how many Chevys and Fords are built in mexico, after all

[Rosco T.]

5. Yup.. my Honda Element was made in Ohio n/m

[Blue to the bone]

6. So we shouldn't insist that Japan quit outsourcing jobs to America? n/t

[indigonation]

7. Thanks good article n/t

[idlisambar]

9. It'a the consolation prize

and another symptom of the fact that our domestic automakers can no longer compete.

[Blue to the bone]

11. Careful Idlisambar........honesty is not always a good thing. n/t

[VirginiaDem]

10. Insourcing--the other side of the outsourcing coin n/t

[Redstone]

12. Smart move, considering how many "American" cars

are built in Canada and Mexico.

Redstone