[kdbolt70]

I got this a couple days ago from Mi senator Debbie Stabenow:

Thank you . . .



. . for contacting me about providing financial support to the American automotive industry. I agree with you, and I'm fighting in the Senate to protect our manufacturers and Michigan workers.



I have led our efforts in the Senate to help the Big Three. In September, the Senate passed a retooling program to provide auto manufacturers with $25 billion in loans to modernize aging plants. This program, which was signed into law, will help automakers begin building the next generation of fuel-efficient vehicles.



Our automakers have been working hard to restructure their businesses to meet the manufacturing needs of the 21st Century. Their employees have sacrificed with job losses and cuts to pay and benefits. We are seeing the generation that created the middle class give up retirement benefits for the survival of the companies they worked for so long to support. Unfortunately, this global economic crisis comes at the worst possible moment for the Big Three, which is why the federal government needs to step in and help.



I am fighting in Congress to give the automakers access to an additional $25 billion in loans out of the $700 billion financial rescue package passed earlier this year. This bridge loan is only a small fraction of the amount we're giving to Wall Street, but investing it in the automotive industry would protect our manufacturing economy and millions of American jobs.



The American automotive industry helped create the middle class. We cannot allow these companies to fail. One out of every ten jobs in our country is auto-related. The loss of the Big Three would cost at least 2.5 million jobs, devastating not only the people of Michigan, but the entire country. With the loss of these jobs, even more families will struggle to pay the mortgages on their homes or to make everyday purchases, expanding the current economic crisis to levels we can hardly imagine.



Know that I will continue to do everything I can to support the domestic automakers and American workers through this economic crisis. We cannot allow the country to be dependent on foreign technology when the creativity and innovation is right here in the United States.
Thank you again for contacting me about this urgent matter. Please continue to keep me informed about issues of concern to you and your family.



Sincerely,

Debbie Stabenow

United States Senator