据外电综合报道：
By John Crawley
WASHINGTON, Nov 5 (Reuters) - President-elect Barack Obama 本科
courted distressed U.S. automakers during his campaign and
pledged to help them, but the industry's health is so bad it
may not be able to wait for him to take office. "He's not here until January (20th) and that's a long time
in the life of these companies at the moment," John Engler, a
former Michigan governor and president and chief executive of
the National Association of Manufacturers, said on Wednesday.
Engler expects fundamental changes in industry before
Obama's inauguration. Engler was not specific. General Motors
Corp <GM.N> said on Wednesday it plans to reveal new cost cuts
when it reports quarterly earnings on Friday. Results at GM and
Ford Motor Co <F.N> are expected to be dismal.
Both GM and Ford congratulated Obama on his election and
associated overall U.S. economic weakness with Detroit's
worsening financial prospects.
Automakers hold out hope the Bush administration, reluctant
to bail out Detroit, will act before yielding power to Obama.
Carmakers, their allies in Congress and other industries have
called on the Treasury Department to extend loans or other
capital as a stop gap.
In coming weeks, companies and their lobbyists plan to
"dial up" their urgency. Industry plans to underscore its
belief that its immediate problems are not of its own making --
that the dire predicament is closely linked to the global
credit crunch and survival depends on federal intervention.
While GM and Ford struggle, prospects at Chrysler LLC are
the most uncertain. People involved in discussions about its
future say the smallest of the U.S. manufacturers could merge,
be spun off or be pushed into bankruptcy if not helped soon.
Engler said a Chrysler failure could cost up to 1 million
jobs throughout the economy.
"It's not just the three auto companies, it's suppliers,
all the way down the chain," Engler said.
While Obama is not yet in office, industry sources say he
could still pressure the Bush administration and exert leverage
on the Democratic-led Congress, if he believes action is needed
to avert a broad economic crisis in manufacturing.
House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on
Wednesday for a $61 billion stimulus plan to spur the U.S.
economy, but said passage later this month would depend on
Senate Republicans and the mood of the White House.
Pelosi met on Monday with auto industry allies in Congress
and key committee chairmen. There is no consensus yet on an aid
proposal for Detroit.
Carmakers, their lobbyists and congressional officials have
suggested up to $25 billion in direct loans with few or no
strings attached to help them through the current crisis,
officials said.
Government red tape is holding up another $25 billion in
advanced technology loans for automakers that was approved in
September. During the campaign, Obama called on the Bush
administration to accelerate that financing.
The United Auto Workers (UAW) has suggested billions in
congressionally approved aid could go to covering retiree
health care costs, freeing up money that companies would
otherwise have to contribute for benefits.
(Additional reporting by David Bailey in Detroit; Editing by
Andre Grenon)
((john.crawley@thomsonreuters.com; 1 202 898 8340))
Keywords: OBAMA/AUTOS
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