Bush: Aid to Automakers Must Be Paid Back
Associated Press
Transcript
I am concerned about the viability of the automobile companies I'm concerned about those who work for the automobile companies and their families and likewise I am concerned about taxpayer money being provided to those companies that uh may not survive put out a detailed plan recently that uses money that Congress appropriated last fall for the Auto industry money that can be used so long as the companies make hard choices on all aspects of their business to prove that they can not only survive but Thrive it is important that Congress act next week on this plan and it's important to make sure that taxpayers money be paid back if any is given to the companies it's going to take time for all the actions we've taken to have their full impact but I am confident that the steps we're taken will help fix the problems in our economy and return it to strength my Administration is committed to ensuring that our economy succeeds and I know the incom Administration shares the same commitment
Dec. 5. Wall Street Rises on Bad Jobs Data
Associated Press
Transcript
Wall Street has put an upbeat spin on the government's report that the nation lost more than a half million jobs last month stocks reversed early losses to finish sharply higher as the job numbers raise hopes that Washington will again step in to help the economy I think what ended up happening was that a lot of Traders had anticipated a really bad number and they got some of the professional selling activity done in yesterday's trading when you saw the dow move down about 275 points mostly in the last half hour but hopes for improvement in the job market are slim Traders expect the coming months to bring more job losses and a further weakening of the economy my guess is that number is going to get even higher as you see the announcements those the number we see saw today doesn't include the record number of layoffs we saw of the Dow stocks yet yesterday AT&T MC Etc all the companies announcing reductions of their staff those are not even in that number yet the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day up 259 points at 8,635 the standard in Po's 500 Index added 31 points to finish at 876 while the NASDAQ tacked on 64 points to finish at, 15009 some analysts have been hopeful that relative quiet in the markets for more than a week portends a return of some stability because of the government's efforts While others warn that the volatility in the market will continue James limbach the Associated Press
More Than Half Million Jobs Axed in November
Associated Press
Transcript
employers axed 533,000 jobs in November the largest cut back in 34 years the labor Department's report pushes the unemployment rate to 6.7% a 15-year high and shows The crucial employment Market deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid clip job losses were widespread hitting factories construction companies financial firms retailers and other Industries almost 200,000 of the job loss came in temp services and in retailing um people just aren't hiring for Christmas because they're not expecting the Shoppers to turn out we also lost about 75,000 jobs in Leisure and Hospitality uh people aren't going out to restaurants to eat they're not staying in hotels those work that work is down as well the loss was much deeper than the 320,000 job Cuts economists were forecasting the rise in the unemployment rate however was not as steep as the 6.8% rate they were expecting taken together though the Dismal employment picture is dramatic proof the country is careening ever deeper into recession Rita Foley the Associated Press
Are Hybrids The Future?
CBS
Transcript
perspective appearing before Congress the message from the big three car companies was clear fuel efficiency and fuel efficiency fuel efficient vehicles on America's streets for 2009 model year 73% of our products will offer improve improved fuel efficiency compared with our 2008 models but is that claim relevant to today's tough economy and they're confusing two things a financial bailout and they're promising to make hybrids they're really separate issues that's because according to many analysts building hybrid vehicles though it's a badge of an environmental conscience won't bring windfall profits at least not for some time come to any of the big three showrooms and you'll certainly find more alternative fuel vehicles for sale like this Chevy Malibu hybrid the is not many people are buying sales of hybrid vehicles are down % from a year ago of course that's when gas prices were more than $3 a gallon if you're really talking about can these companies make more money than cars or electric cars not unless gasoline is $6 a gallon and $40,000 on one of these it's a tough sell but the car companies aren't backing down we expect to have 500,000 Chrysler electrics on the road by 2013 even as hybrid or electric cars pave the way for our fuel saving future the question is how the Auto industry will navigate the short term the early show Daniel seberg CBS News New York sh [Music]
Auto Bailout Pros And Cons
CBS
Transcript
with a bailout or without when the Big Three automakers will also still have to lay off thousands of workers they are back on Capitol Hill today asking Congress for emergency funds we're joined this morning by Jim pres Chrysler's president and vice chairman good morning mr. Pres good morning thank you thank you we have all heard arguments over the last few weeks about the consequences of a collapse of the auto industry we've heard you and Ford and GM vow to make responsible changes yet there is still thin support for a bailout both from Congress and if you believe the polls from the American public do you understand why there's so much skepticism oh absolutely I can understand that especially with this Wall Street bailout that went on and people don't know really what happened maybe the timing is bad but we're talking about jobs we're talking about our manufacturing presence in America it's it's a different story now but a point that was made yesterday by Senator Shelby of Alabama who's listening to this interview and we'll respond afterwards is that if you went to a bank for a loan you would probably be dismissed so why should we risk taxpayer money how can you guarantee that you will pay it back well I don't know what criteria he's using we've got a really a great plan in fact we've got a track record our restructuring plan so far this year by the first half of the year we almost made some some good profit but what's happened is the market has collapsed by over a third it's not caused by us or any of the companies all the companies including the the imports are struggling right now and we've got to preserve our American manufacturing base and our jobs but these changes that you're now going to make including the the $1 annual salaries for the CEO and other more substantive changes why didn't you make them sooner didn't you see this coming well you know we've just owned this company now for a year and we started making the changes when we first got involved the timing of this market collapse and the credit and the unexpected gas mileage mean those were things that hit us all it got our working capital down braixen for a working capital loan and we're going to put it to good work because we're gonna create jobs we're gonna we're gonna create the American Way of life you say that you need seven billion immediately by December 31st if you don't get the money mr. pres look will Chrysler ceased to exist well you know it's a great question because as we get in the first quarter it's hard to see what the markets gonna be like and also on all this talk of bankruptcy has caused our suppliers and our customers to have a lack of confidence we've got to restore that confidence so by the first quarter of the year we could run into difficulty paying our bills and that's not something we want to look at so you think yes it could it very well could and you know it's a crime because we've got some great products coming out the timing is good for us is we got some hybrids and electric cars and we ought to get through this all pulled together we've got customers that want to buy cars and people that want to make them let's find a way to put it together and and keep the jobs all right Jim pres thank you for your time this morning thank you now here's Harry all right thanks Megan Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama is the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee and opposes a taxpayer bailout of the auto industry good morning sir good morning Harry you heard anything this week that changes your mind at all absolutely not Harry two weeks ago the big three auto or the little three whatever you want to call them now they came to Washington and jets just asked for 25 billion two weeks later they drove and they asked for 9 billion more I believe this is just the beginning not the end of what they would want we had testimony yesterday in the Banking Committee in the Senate that said it would it could be a hundred and twenty five billion some people say much more these people these this management the management and the predecessors that manage these companies have ruined these companies they're not competing they're not efficient they're not bringing products to the market that people want and now they want to come here because they're basically failed companies and say let's get the taxpayer involved right sue the center limit let me ask you this is there anything they could say that would change your mind oh absolutely not because they have an avenue here to stay in business to make these companies efficient that's chapter 11 or a pre structured chapter 11 where they will shed a lot of the fat in the management too many people working too lines of cars and save thousands of jobs but they don't want to do this because the management and a lot of people they say will hold on because they believe at the end they're going to get the taxpayers money and it'll never stop Center I won't ask you this because as we went through this Citigroup went through its second trip to the federal trough for money just ten or twelve days ago a lot of folks were saying at that time well this firm is too big to let fail there's some people and around the country economists who say these auto companies can't be allowed to fail is it have we really thought through this what happens to the economy as a whole if these companies go down the drain cease say six-month parents a good question because they are failing they're failing or I have failed already that's why they're coming here to Washington no bank our series of banks in the world would make this loan or even part of it and you better ask yourself why not because they don't believe the money will ever be paid back these companies could restructure not fail but they would be leaner and there would be fewer workers but there'd be a lot of be a viable enterprises if they have the will to do it I don't believe the management and labor wants to do it yet yeah all right senator Shelby thank you so much for your time thank you Harry all right
Auto Expert: Bailout Not Enough
CBS
Transcript
are these plans that the automakers put on the table enough to return them to profitability and viability long term no no no and and not only are they not enough uh they don't happen quickly enough they're they're they're correct they've done a lot of work with the Union contract they've done a lot of work in the product portfolio um but still more needs to be done and it needs to be accelerated General Motors talked about reducing their dealership footprint from 6,400 down by 1,800 by 2012 and they don't have that kind of time even if they get bailout money even if they get the 18 billion that they're talking about the cash burn in the third quarter was $6.9 billion you know so you're at at these seasonally adjusted rates below 11 million you're burning $1.5 billion per month it it doesn't take a financial analyst to figure out how long you have in that kind of scenario so really there is no 2012 1,800 dealerships by 2012 is is just making up numbers and making up dates more more or less uh I think what they don't have that much time no they don't have that much time and the fact of the matter is is that call it a bailout give them some money call it a prepackaged bankruptcy there's a lot of work that needs to be done no matter what it winds up being it's going to look like a bankruptcy if you're not going to make real significant structural change which those plans really don't lay out and and and I think they've been in a little bit of denial saying look we've done enough work the product portfolio is good uh we just need to make it to 2010 and Beyond and we'll be okay and I I think that uh that in and of itself is a scary thought to say you're okay you're in the situation you're in and you you think you've done all you can well if there's nothing left for you to do when you're in this shape then we probably can't help you then nothing's going to help you short of hundreds of billions of dollars in just loans to say keep going keep going um it's it's really structural change that should have been made years ago 10 years ago 15 years ago decades ago really 2008 was the death of the Auto industry as we know it now what emerges on the other side 12 24 months from now remains to be seen uh there is a future for it uh this is a nation that loves its automobiles uh it's just an Antiquated business model that doesn't work in this in this global environment uh so I think there somewhere down the road in the future there is a there's a viable and vibrant Auto industry it's just not going to be the one we've known for the past 100 years
Bush Concerned About Automakers
CBS
Transcript
today's job data reflects the fact that our economy is in a recession this is in large part because of severe problems in our housing credit and financial markets which have resulted in significant job losses i'm concerned about our workers who've lost jobs during this downturn and let's we work to as we work to address the problems of this economy we've extended unemployment insurance benefits to those who have lost their jobs during this downturn we are focusing on the root causes of the economic downturn in order to return our economy to health most urgent issue facing the economy is the problem in the credit markets businesses and consumers need access to credit at affordable rates to spend and invest and so we're working to stabilize the markets and make credit more affordable and available we're working with the federal reserve and fdic and credit is beginning to move a market that was frozen uh is thawing there's still more work to do but there are some encouraging signs the root cause of the slowdown is housing and so we continue to take actions that will avoid preventable foreclosures and speed a return to a healthy housing market interest rates help the housing market recover interest rates mortgage rates are going down and plus there's a number of programs in place to help americans stay in their homes to limit the preventable foreclosures i am concerned about the viability of the automobile companies i'm concerned about those who work for the automobile companies and their families and likewise i am concerned about taxpayer money being provided to those companies that may not survive put out a detailed plan recently that uses money that congress appropriated last fall for the auto industry money that can be used so long as the companies make hard choices on all aspects of their business to prove that they can not only survive but thrive it is important that congress act next week on this plan and it's important to make sure that taxpayer money be paid back if any is given to the companies it's going to take time for all the actions we've taken to have their full impact but i am confident that the steps were taken will help fix the problems in our economy and return it to strength my administration is committed to ensuring that our economy succeeds and i know the incoming administration shares the same commitment thank you very much any of them go out of business what about a second stimulus
Dealers Fear GM Model Cuts
CBS
Transcript
i've been in the business over 35 years my father started his business in 1958 so we've been around for a while my name is rush shelton i'm president ceo of shelton pontiac buick gmc being a pontiac buick gmc dealer and seeing the word panic in the equation or maybe not in the equation is enough to cause anybody concern at this point that's foreign business at least at this store is about 50 of what i sell overall so that would certainly uh change the way we do business here when you say business is down 50 that's one thing but when you possibly going to lose 50 of your gross profit your income that's a whole different story that we're going to have to look at if it comes to pass i am assuming we're still going to have a pontiac of some sort it's going to be part of the buick pontiac gmc franchise as they call it now and it's been referenced as of late that maybe the pontiac could be a model within a model like corvette is to chevrolet the g6 is their number one seller and everything else kind of falls in behind that before the crunch we couldn't build g6s fast enough there was only like a three day supply out there well that's a very big portion of our production is the pontiac g6 which is a outstanding car and for them to cut that would be devastating to the plan it's forty percent of our build so i mean if that shuts a shift down there's more job loss pontiac has been you know always a seller even more so when i first started here this was never going to happen largest corporation in the world that's enough to trouble anybody i think
Starbucks CEO On Economy
CBS
Transcript
We have seen people who perhaps are making a discretionary decision either in the afternoon or perhaps not come because they don't have the money. So what do you think went wrong? When I look in the mirror and think about the growth and development of the company, I think what's honest is that perhaps growth did cover some mistakes. Did you grow too big too fast, do you think? Well, I think in hindsight, if we knew what was going to happen in the economy, one can conclude yes.
Bleak Future For U.S. Jobs
CBS
Transcript
across the country in nearly every industry the country Hemorrhage jobs with more than 500,000 layoffs in November we've now lost one and a qu million jobs in just the past three months these numbers are horrific and I think we can expect to see some very scary headlines for some time to come construction lost another 82,000 jobs manufacturing 85,000 and the service sector 370,000 a sign that retailers have cut way back on holiday hiring today's job data reflects the fact that our economy is in a recession a recession that is only deepening and likely to take job losses even higher are we talking about an 8% unemployment rate a 9% unemployment rate what you have yes you have to get prepared for 8 and % unemployment rate Economist lakman atuan in other words this could be the worst resp session uh in the postwar World War II period already in this first week of December AT&T announced 12,000 layoffs was everybody kind of expecting this you think no well no yes but the all the other big companies are reducing the work force the drivers of the economy atan says are still downshifting rapidly we've been in this recession for a year already how long can it last there's no rules there's no rules on how long this recession can last it could the long longest we've seen in the post War World War II period is 16 months there's a very good chance this will break that record Another 600,000 workers saw their full-time hours cut to part-time in November as the average number of hours an employee worked in a week fell to a record low Katie we haven't seen this kind of job destruction in the economy since 1945 all right Anthony Mason thank you Anthony
Unemployed Turn To Military
CBS
Transcript
do swear that I will support and defend in Downtown Dallas today new recruits pledge to protect and defend their country against all enemies part of a growing number who find in uncertain times patriotism pays unemployment rates are going Skyrocket and when you're looking at how bad unemployment rates are I think you find yourself kind of going oh what do I do now it's even personal in today's market where jobs are being shed and people are losing jobs the Navy is still hiring and the pitch may be paying off the Army LED all four branches of the military this past year as they exceeded recruiting goals and it's not just new recruits the Army also surpassed its goal for retaining men and women already serving by 14% today Kevin Bon signed his reenlistment papers the Sergeant First Class could have retired tomorrow after 20 years in the Illinois National Guard until the economy changed and things started to turn around I mean it for the long run Sergeant Matthew Stern has also resigned he says patriotism means more than a paycheck but admits the Army is a great place to prepare for any career you got the benefits at your medical and dental benefits and you're getting the skills to lead people the military says the economic downturn is too recent to be the sole reason behind the recruiting surge but acknowledges it helps what uh more difficult economic times give us I think it's an opening to make our case to people that we might not otherwise have and if we make our case I think we be successful successful recruiting comes at a critical time for a military stretch between two Wars and for soldiers hoping to secure their country and their own economic Futures Cynthia Bowers CBS News Fort Riley Kansas