TOP 100 RACING SITES
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| Congressional Scrappage Bills Invite Protectionism Criticism On March 17, Rep. Betty Sutton (D-Ohio) and Rep. Candice Miller (R-MI) introduced a bill that would give car buyers thousands of dollars in vouchers for replacing vehicles at least eight years old with fuel efficient vehicles.The bill is an almost sure fire way to drive demand for new vehicle sales--with positive rippling effects that would be felt at the automakers, suppliers and dealers.But so far, every bill that tries to tackle this issue has been bogged down in arguments over protectionism. Here's why: the bill, as well as two that went before it, favor U.S. built vehicles over those built in Canada and Mexico. And the most recent bill from Sutton leaves out cars built abroad all together."We very much want to see a neutral bill," said Michael Stanton, president of the International Automobile Manufacturers Association. Stanton says he applauds the goal of pushing more fuel efficient vehicles in the bills, but doesn't think legislation should create "winners and losers" based on where the car is assembled. The Alliance of Automobile Manufactures has expressed the very same thing.Mazda North American Operations spoke for itself. "We feel it is very protectionist," said Mmazda spokesman Jeremy Barnes. "Our concern is that it is a 'Buy American' piece of legislation."Indeed, though there is populist sentiment among the electorate that tax-paper funded bailouts and stimulus packages should help U.S. companies only, it is tough to pull that off when the U.S. is the lynchpin in a global economy and it has extensive trade agreements with foreign countries.Nichole Francis Reynolds, chief of staff for Rep. Sutton, said that charges of "protectionism" in the bill was a "tactic to distract from the real goal." She said that there is nothing wrong with "helping home first." By "home," she means U.S. manufacturers and suppliers. rss.businessweek.com |
In troubled economy, IndyCar racing searches for right road After 13 years of being unfavorably compared to other racing organizations, the Indy Racing League has shown during the current ... rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Massa alert, answering questions in hospital after near-fatal crash Felipe Massa's doctor says the driver is increasingly alert and answering questions in three languages, and the head of the Ferrari ... rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Johnson's hopes for four-peat royalty gaining momentum Lowe's Motor Speedway anointed Richard Petty the "king" of its upcoming homecoming-themed Sprint Cup race with a black cowboy ... rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Sainz, Al-Attiyah clash at Dakar Dakar Rally leader Carlos Sainz angrily denounced his Volkswagen team-mate Nasser Al-Attiyah after the two drivers clashed on the 13th and penultimate stage of the race in Argentina. foxsports.com.au |