Bailing Out the Big Three: Let the Auto Workers Run Detroit!

And if the government does step in to rescue General Motors, Chrysler and Ford--a move backed by top congressional Democrats--it will raise pressure on Obama to offer government aid to more big companies threatened with bankruptcy and underwrite the restructuring of entire industries.

Already, Rahm Emanuel, Obama's pick to be his chief of staff, has joined Senate Majority Leader Henry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in calling for government aid to the auto industry.

But if the companies get government loans or other assistance, what happens to workers' jobs, pay and benefits? Will, for example, the government finance a proposed merger of GM and Chrysler that could eliminate 40,000 jobs? Will the U.S. Treasury put up the $58 billion that the companies must pay the UAW to support a trust fund for retiree health care?

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THOSE QUESTIONS loomed in the background as the Big Three automakers reported their worst monthly sales figures in years and huge losses. GM executives said that the company has $16.2 billion in the bank, but it expects to spend money for daily operations at a pace of about $2 billion a month. The company could run out of money by the end of next year.

CEO Rick Wagoner said that GM can't file for bankruptcy to get protection from creditors, since consumers are unlikely to buy cars from a bankrupt company. If the company were to go out of business altogether, it would send a wave of job losses through manufacturing and car dealerships that could eliminate 2.5 million jobs and wipe out $125 billion in personal income in just one year, according to the Center for Automotive Research, a think tank with close ties to GM.

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THE ISSUE is--or should become--what kind of auto industry bailout will take place. If the government is going to put up billions, why should a discredited and bloated management remain in place? Call the intervention what it is--nationalization. Throw out the management and use their compensation for investment--and put workers' committees in control of production.

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