Bailout Watch 336: Have You Heard the One About the Automaker That Borrowed $7b From the Federal Government and Then Went Bankrupt?

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

“‘The government loan was just in time,’ [Chrysler Co_president jim] Press said. ‘It’s kind of like if you were in college and you were at the last of the four years and you were kind of low on money and your parents put all that money back into the back account. ‘It’s good timing.’

“Press also joked about the federal loans when introducing other top executives at Chrysler as Sunday’s press event started.

“‘This is the guy that has the money, he’s got all the money,’ Press said in introducing Chrysler Chief Financial Officer Ron Kolka. ‘The government checks go right to Ron Kolka, so if anybody needs a loan, see Ron Kolka.'”

Hey Ron, can I borrow $1m? I’m just messing with you. No, but seriously. We could become an official supplier of Chrysler humor.

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Rod Panhard Rod Panhard on Jan 12, 2009

    Interesting analogy. The exact thing happened to me in 1982 when the economy fell in the toilet. Except I was in my second year of college. So I went and got three part-time jobs. Perhaps that's what Chrysler and the employees should do. Go get additional part time jobs so they can prop up their employer whom they love so much.

  • 63CorvairSpyder 63CorvairSpyder on Jan 12, 2009

    Lets see: 1. My house value is down about 100K from 2006. 2. My 401K is down about 100K from late 2007. 3. My youngest just finished college, cost me over 100K not counting what he paid plus his student loans. Ya think Kolka could free up 300K for me? If he did.......hell, I'd promise to buy a new Dodge Ram and stimulate the economy further with some other consumer spending. And...and I don't mean a loan, I mean a bailout(gift).

  • Landcrusher Landcrusher on Jan 12, 2009

    I think everyone knows my line here...

  • Jerry weber Jerry weber on Jan 12, 2009

    Wall Street Journal is saying today that the Chrysler dealer network with 150 days of new chryslers (some 2008-2007's) is not ordering new cars from the factory. Chrysler is shut down until February. The question is, will many of these chrysler plants ever re open? Will the governement paint all these excess chryslers gray or army green and agree to take them into their fleet? Because if the government that is financing Chrysler doesn't intend to take most of the cars they produce, 150 days inventory will seem low by next summer.

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