Mail in the Box

Yesterday received an email from the White House. This was written by a young lady who in 2009 asked President Obama to protect the auto industry so that her father can remain employed.

"Dear President Obama,

My dad works for a company that manufactures cables for the automotive companies … This industry isn’t doing so well but these guys are still doing ok. I thought it would be nice if you gave them a visit … I am 13 years old and I am worried about my family’s future in Michigan."

The new letter in which this is encapsulated, follows with the comments...

That was then. Today, the company my dad works for is thriving again, giving him a brighter outlook to continue his career as an auto supplier. The falling unemployment rate makes me feel more hopeful about finding a career of my own after college. People in Michigan are more confident about the future of our state than they’ve felt in a long time.

When President Obama saved the auto industry, he gave Michiganders like me and my family hope again.

That’s why I’m so proud to see President Obama return to Detroit to talk about the resurgence of our manufacturing industry. Today at 3:25pm ET, tune in to watch his speech.

As a 13-year-old girl, I saw a few of my relatives get laid off from the automotive companies they worked for. I felt that it was unfair to them because I knew they were hard workers. Through overhearing my dad talk to customers and colleagues on the phone, I got a sense of just how much the entire industry was struggling then.

When I wrote to President Obama in 2009, I felt hopeful something could be done to improve this terrible situation.

Seven years after the President took steps to rescue the auto industry, so much has changed. I’ve seen foreclosed homes being occupied again, new homes being built, and people going back to work in the auto industry.

Today, President Obama will see firsthand the progress we’ve made here. In just a little bit, I'll be heading to see the President speak in downtown Detroit -- you can watch his speech at 3:25pm ET.

I’m proud to welcome him back to the Motor City.

Thanks,

Brianna

Brianna Leathers

Sterling Heights, Michigan

Now, in general I have no deep problems with this letter, it does include some references that suggest this was not written, at least entirely by Brianna Leathers.
The first yellow highlighted comment may very well have been written by our young lady, but I must argue that President Obama did not save the auto industry. What the President did do was illegally present GM capital that belonged to stockholders, to the UAW. Then he used government money to keep the General Motors afloat. Then the government repeatedly misled with poorly built statistics about the sales and profitability until market for car sales, buoyed by low gasoline prices, improved. The market for cars is good right now, and at some time it will turn for the worse, then back again. The President DID NOT SAVE THE AUTO INDUSTRY, he gave money taken from taxpayers and propped up struggling businesses until market conditions changed.  I will add that the greatest problem for General Motors was that GM Capital had issued credit to risky borrowers at the behest of a progressive government. GM Capital owned the bad that was sinking the GM ship.
In blue highlight there are references to scheduled speech in Detroit, this could not be know by an independent person writing a letter of appreciation to the President.
To end, the President Obama has been a successful politician, he has initiated and forced many liberal policies, that President Clinton could not. His political success is why he is universally distrusted by all on the right except the Republican aristocracy.  What he has not been, is a good leader of United States citizens, or as an effective leader of the free world. Letters such  as this lay claim to achievements not earned, much like the Nobel Peace Prize, and represent a lame attempt to burnish a legacy that, at the moment, parallels that of James Earl Carter.