GM CEO Mary Barra attended the State of the Union Address after receiving an invitation from the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama. She had the opportunity to sit in the First Lady’s box along with 15 other guests including Andra Rush, founder and chair of the Rush Group, a manufacturing auto supplier in Detroit that is adding hundreds of jobs to the city.
Barra’s attendance is a complete turn-around from the company’s attempt to avoid political notoriety while dodging the “Government Motors” appellation it received in recent years. In 2012 during the presidential campaign, GM restricted President Obama and his running mate Mitt Romney from it’s factories because they were fed up with being tossed around in what seemed like a political tennis match. It is obvious, however, that those feelings have changed since then. Barra gave Vice President Joe Biden a personal tour of the GM exhibit at the Auto Show last week in Detroit. Furthermore, President Obama has voiced his support of the successful $49.5 billion that GM received from his administration numerous times. Barra and President Obama even share the same opinions about S.T.E.M. education calling it a “personal passion”.
“I was honored to accept the first lady’s invitation, and delighted to represent the men and women of GM who are doing their best to make GM a company that Americans can be proud of again,” Barra said in a Detroit Free Press story. ” GM is doing its part to help lead a stronger auto industry that is creating new jobs and technologies.”
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Nothing like being used as a political pawn and I do not care what side you are on. Sad!
But anymore in the auto industry you have to kiss any and every butt before they kick yours with new regulation.
Good thing you're not on the diplomatic staff. They specialize in being discreet.
Actually Scott... I see no harm in being gracious to the administration that saved your company.
Hopefully, Michelle and Barack were able to pass a message along to Ms. Barra to stay the course
with Volt and Voltech, and make other iterations and platforms - LIKE EREV PICKUP TRUCKS!!!!!!
I gather Barra and Ruess are much more enamored with Impala, Camaro, Corvette and Escalade -
and not so much in the Volt which they've recently called " a nich halo".
GM needs to wake up and smell the frackin' petrol
Where's Maximum Bob Lutz when ya need him?!!! I know he's over 70, but he's miles ahead of
Barra, Ammon and Ruess.
Where's Bob? He's promoting VIA Trucks - that's where he is now. VIA has a little production facility
just miles from GM's Silverado plant in Mexico. There, they take new GM trucks and place lithium
battery packs and a V-6 with two electric motors - nearly identical to GM's Voltec system which
Lutz and John Laukner can be proud of as their fathers.
If a tiny startup like VIA can make GM trucks with EREV drive - why can't GM who has the suppliers,
facilities, engineers and technical experience to do so? A VIATRUX may cost a fleet manager
$80,000, but GM could mass produce hundreds of thousands at economies of scale and sell them
to you and I for $50,000. Get 90mpge for 40 miles, then 35mpg in range extender mode...and add
vehicle to home capability to save us from power outages in our homes...and the ability to plug
our power tools into the truck at any worksite...and $50,000 looks awfully good, especially during
summer when gas goes well over $4.00/gal..
Right now, today - truck builders sell Escalades for huge coin. Today, a F-150 Laredo buyer lays down
50-large for leather, fancy add-ons and such. GM is really messed up in priorities right now.
James you may be shock but the love for gas or electric is all subjective. There is not right or wrong here as one is a new technology that still has a lot of growth and investment needed. But also gas is still cheap and we are not going to run our of oil for a long time to come.
The people who like to espouse we are running out of oil and preach global warming often are invested nipple deep in the green energy markets. The most well know is of course Al Gore and the most dangerous is Mr Maurice Strong.
Even Mr Obama is deeply in with the Chicago Carbon Exchange which make it not surprising how he has come down on coal and has refused the oil pipe line from Canada dissing his heavy contributor in the construction unions.
Mr Lutz is a champion of the Voltech and his new truck but I would not ever expect to see him with the present Commander and Chief. They are polar opposites when it comes to politics and I do not see either wanting to be in the others company.
The real issue is Electric cars are and will be on the more expensive side to come for a little longer. The Scale just does not always work on technology in transition as it will be changing a lot over the next 10 years. Also until there is a battery that is found to last longer and can charge as fast as it takes to fill a tank of gas with out degradation there will be a majority who will resist it.
James if you want to be creditable you should just stick to this as a growing segment with more improvements to come. We are just not there yet but give it a little more time and these things will come in time. We did not get to the moon when John Glenn orbited the earth the first time but in ten years of research and advancements that continued from that orbit we did get there. Right now we have only seen the first orbit.
R Smyrna
The Diplomats discreetly specializing in ducking the bullets at the embassy with the lack of security that no one is responsible for. As someone said what does it matter? I would just love to hear my boss say that. LOL!
But I agree no matter if you agree with his agenda or not it is in your best interest to take the invitation. This is just the dirty side of business and politics.
This story makes me want to buy a Ford. She should of declined.
I don't like the oBummer family either, but it was a good decision on Barra's part. .
scott... Its a dirty job I would not want.
Your reply to James was spot on.
Evan... Maybe it's because of my age, or my Dad, but I've learned to like everyone.
Separate the policies from the persons character. I disagreed with just about every policy of Bush jr. but I liked him then, and I like him now.
Life is too short to be judgmental.
I will admit that I can be judgmental at sometimes, but there is pure evidence of why I don't like the oBummers. I'm not going to get into politics here, because last time that happened yeah. . .
I try to judge people by their character and I see none in the present administration. While all politicians will fudge the truth this one lies and lies again and the corrupt press lets them get away with it.
It cracks me up how a press will go after Christy over a bridge closure and not hold a administration responsible for Benghazi, the IRS scandal and NSA breaches. We have civil rights that have been broken and people dead and they are now after a guy for a bridge closure.
There are few people suited for the top office and most are smart enough not to take it or are too honest to ever get elected by telling the truth. So we get more and more folks promising the world and feeding favors to the their big contributors and letting us the people who really work for a living to pay for the rest. What is sad over half the country is getting government funds in some way and the minority are paying for it.
I get so tired of this class warfare BS too.
Anyways I just hope GM can finally separate themselves form being used by the administration as a pawn.
What I miss in DC and the media is honesty and integrity as both are a might lacking anymore.
I am not a Democrat but I wish more of them would support Joe Manchin of WV. He and Coburn of OK and Rodgers of UT are three of the few who are not playing many stupid games and are doing what is right with or with out their parties.
Evan/Scott... It still come down to morals and ethics.
In a way... I'm worse than both of you... I don't like, and can't stand the policies of both parties, but socially most of the varmits are good people with the best of intentions. Libertarians, liberals, conservatives, progressives... Some of them are my best friends and family... :)
I'm a Neanderthal military isolationist, and an economic protectionist... just like A. Lincoln, and the original republican party... a party that doesn't exist anymore.