Democrats are letting the contenders for the Republican presidential nomination off the hook on the issue of rescuing the American auto industry. Ironically, they're doing so by using Mitt Romney's own words against him.
Romney's "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt" opinion piece at the time of the auto industry rescue seems devastating, and in many ways it is. Bringing it up is especially effective here in Michigan, of course.
But why should the rest of the nation really care about Detroit and Michigan's troubles, when they have troubles of their own? By implying that the rescue was only for Detroit, or jobs in Michigan, Democrats let voters in the rest of the country forget about auto industry jobs around the nation -- in assembly plants, dealerships, and auto suppliers.
They also let people forget that not only Chrysler and General Motors would have disappeared, but so would the suppliers that furnished parts to Ford. Ford's survival would have been in jeopardy at that point, too. So even though Ford did not need a rescue itself, it needed a rescue for Chrysler and General Motors in order to stay in business. This point was made at the time, but it seems to have been lost.
Democrats need to remind voters of the broad national impact of Romney's foolish plan, not narrow it to one region.
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