Lee Rodgers morning host, KSFO 560 AM ABC Radio Network, Citadel Broadcasting

 11-19-2008 05:23

Lee Rodgers: And the other thing that is pervasive these days, “Oh were going to bail out the automobile industry. If we don’t it’s going to shut down. Millions of people out of work.” BULLCRAP! Almost every major airline in this country has been threw one or more bankruptcies and what happens when they go bankrupt? Sometimes they get out of union contracts.

Officer Vic: Right

LR: that were made in palmer days when they thought they could give away the store and keep flying, but hey look at those airlines, how many times has United been bankrupt? Go to the airport today you’ll see the grey planes lined up ready to go places.

OV: Um Hum.

LR: Everybody say “Oh it will just shut down.” No it won’t and people won’t stop buying cars, they might start buying more Fords, Chevy’s and Chryslers if those countries those companies were run by people who have any sense about the automobile business. Cars would be made, but they wouldn’t be made at an average employee union worker cost of over 78 dollars an hour.

OV; Yep.

LR: The union priced its way out of the market is what happened. The greed knew no end, the gutless management people of big American car companies with no back bone, they just cave in over and over and it’s killing them.  Don’t you think for a moment all of this talk of a bailout is bailing out the car companies.

OV: No

LR: No. No. No. No. No. No. It’s about bailing out the United Autoworkers Union. The average cost per hour, I repeat, something like 78 dollars an hour. That includes

OV: Benefits it includes salary and all the goodies per hour per worker

LR: Vacation time, pension plan you know the 20 and out deal and you keep getting paid the same money, it’s insane. It’s insane and it’s breaking the car companies, but of course the democrats, especially want to bail out the union because their buying union votes, it’s what democrats do. But if you let everyone of the big car companies go bankrupt today, they would still be making cars tomorrow.

OV: of course

LR: They would simply say, Uhhh no we are not going to pay that kind of money anymore because in other parts of the country. Uh Honda, Toyota, Mercedes, KIA they are making cars in this country and they are doing it for about 26, 27 dollars an hour less and just say, “That’s what we are going to pay you, take it or leave it.” You know what, they’d take it.

OV: You can ask

LR: This kind of shake down can’t go on forever and if we taxpayers subsidize it nothing will change. When did the United States government get in the business of rewarding failure?

OV: Great point.