05/24/2011 - Chrysler Loan Repayment Marks Extraordinary Turnaround

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 24, 2011

Chrysler Loan Repayment Marks Extraordinary Turnaround
Would Indiana Republicans have let Detroit go bankrupt?

INDIANAPOLIS – In response to today’s news that Chrysler has repaid $5.9 billion in loans to the U.S. government and American taxpayers, Indiana Democratic Party Chair lauded President Obama for his strong economic leadership and success taking action to prevent the collapse of America’s domestic auto industry.

Parker also said Indiana Republicans who voted against or publicly opposed Obama’s auto plan now find themselves on the wrong side of history.

“Indiana’s auto industry was hard hit by the recent economic crisis, and this is a great sign both for Chrysler and Hoosier workers,” Parker said. “President Obama’s plan wasn’t popular in many parts of the country, but Democrats did what was necessary to save the more than 1.4 million jobs that the American auto industry supports. Without that kind of strong leadership, many of our communities would have suffered economic disaster.”

Chrysler’s good news comes on the heels of a report that the company made its first quarterly profit since emerging from structured bankruptcy reorganization. Chrysler posted a 22.5% increase of sales in April compared to the same month last year and first quarter net income of $116 million, marking a remarkable turnaround for Chrysler and the domestic auto industry.

After receiving loan packages and emerging from structured bankruptcy reorganization, Chrysler and General Motors are both hiring again and operating at a profit.

Parker noted that Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and U.S. Rep Mike Pence, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination, both opposed the President’s auto plan. State Treasurer Richard Mourdock, who is running for U.S. Senate, spent more than $2 million of taxpayer dollars in an unsuccessful lawsuit against Chrysler.

“While the President was leading the way with a plan that’s saved our domestic auto industry, these guys were up on a soapbox with the latest partisan talking points from Washington,” Parker said. “President Obama is on the right side of history, and Hoosier workers have a lot to be thankful for.”

In November of last year, General Motors’ initial public offering became the biggest in history, raising more than $20 billion. And the government has already recovered more than $23 billion of its investment in General Motors. And recently, General Motors employees were rewarded for their hard work with profit-sharing checks that averaged $4,300. Another 3,000 workers at GM Components Holdings received about $3,200.

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