I was quite surprised initially when I started reading the BusinessWeek article, GOP to Detroit: Drop Dead. Certainly the “Big 3″ have lobbyist and money they have spread around Capital Hill, and congress has been more than happy to take their money and do things like blocking any attempts to force improved fuel efficiency or up emission standards. So why are they so willing to appear cruel and uncaring to the auto industry now? I think the answer can be found in one statement deep down in the article:

According to one automaker lobbyist who asked not to be identified because of the current negotiations: “I think Bush’s economic team was hoping the automakers would get weak enough to bust the UAW.…It’s no secret that they have no love of organized labor.”

And there it is. They don’t necessarily want the automakers to fall apart entirely. They simply want the union to get busted, because unions force companies to “spread the wealth.” Oh, there are some with their own agenda. Southern States (without a UAW presence), that have benefited by having Toyota, Hyndai and BMW build factories there want to be the “new Detroit” and oppose the bailout because they see the failure of Detroit as a boon to their States.

Of course, the Union doesn’t win itself any friends when as everybody is warning about imminent collapse and the potential loss of many jobs, that union President Ron Gettelfinger says Congress must do the bailout, and that the union will make no more concessions, even while President Elect Barack Obama’s advisors are saying that workers are going to have to take a pay cut.

On a side note, to be honest in my 43 year, the UAW has been held up as a model by many people as to what is wrong with this country from a competitive standpoint, how under skilled workers made above average salaries to the detriment of the economy because of unions that were “too powerful” like the UAW. I am not saying it is true, but I will say, that making such a blanket statement, when the options are potentially make concessions or everybody is out of work… well it just appears quite arrogant to be taking such a stance right now. Unemployment is high, people are feeling the financial pinch all over. It just gives more ammunition to those that see busting the union as the “first step” more ammunition to work with.

Update: Think Progress has also picked up on this and has a video compilation of Conservatives Politicians blaming the unions for Detroit’s woes

Filed under: Conservatives, Media Falsehoods