Yesterday we saw a group of hypocritical blow-hards who call themselves politicians hold a drawn-out subcommittee hearing on the General Motors ignition switch recall, and why it took so long to handle the issue.
There was a power-tripping representative from Colorado, an old man from Michigan who was probably wearing a diaper, somebody who couldn’t understand why GM wasn’t using push-button start systems back then, and a bloated Missourian who had to fight for his breath as he related his affiliation to General Motors to that of CEO Mary Barra because he drove a GMC Jimmy when he was 18. These were most of the people who made up yesterday’s House Energy and Commerce Committee oversight panel, constantly asking Barra the same questions over, and over, and over again.
These are just some of the people that hold power in this country.
This morning, it was the Senate’s turn. And because it’s a Republican fad to dislike General Motors, it seems like a rerun of yesterday’s circus, just with louder voices. Moreover, these hastily assembled hearings were thrown together during an ongoing investigation, rather than waiting for all the facts to be uncovered. Probably for reelection points. Yet one remains puzzled as to why so many of America’s youth is dying and have died overseas in “wars” that have gone well beyond their expiration date, which these politicians continually approve in comfort.
Regardless, it seems that based on these hearings, and the evidence that has so-far been unearthed; General Motors may be claiming behavioral and cultural changes on the executive level, but needs more focus on middle-management.
Barra’s statement is as follows:
“The issues raised in the hearing were tough but fair. I appreciate the intense interest by the senators to fully understand what happened and why. I am going to accomplish exactly that, and we will keep Congress informed. Meanwhile, we will continue doing all we can to repair our customers’ vehicles and rebuild their trust in GM.”
For more, watch the 2-hour, 43-minute Senate subcommittee hearing here.
Comments
Poor Mrs. Barra…..I hope she hangs in there. Looks like GM’s in for it now……….Having to not only rebuild trust in their customers, they also have to withstand political attacks; along with the media hounds.
It made me so angry how they berated Ms. Barra. I think there is a way to ask for information and speak to someone is a respectable manner. It was almost like some of the Senators were trying to provoke her. They also have a bias against GM, too, which in my opinion, isn’t fair in light of what’s going on. Senator McCaskill and the other former attorney Senator (female) were really trying to demonize Ms. Barra and GM. Senator McCaskill came off condescending, arrogant, and made fool of herself.
As expected but there were three areas that they went a little out of bounds.
The first was the lady politician asking Barra to support her proposed law to force rental agencies to not rent vehicles that have recalls. That had nothing to do with the ignition switch. GM pulled all the effected vehicles from all rental agencies. Gm does not control rental agencies. The lady pulled out some manufacturers association document stating the OEM’s do not support her proposed law but Mary probably knew nothing about it.
The second was that the release engineer perjured himself and should be fired. If the lady politician was so sure he perjured himself why does she not have him arrested? As Mary repeatably said once the facts are in she will take action.
The third was the demeanor of the lady politician. Way over the top. Is this the way we want our leaders to act? Like crazy dogs looking for meat? Lets get the facts and use them to punish the guilty.
The political grand standing is to be expected.
These high profile stories attract politicians like a Moth to a flame.
The sad thing is many who speak up have no clue what they are attacking. That is the sad part. These are the same folks who can not even unravel the Benghazi deal of their own making let alone this deal.
I think Mary has done well as there is a limit to what she can say or do at this point till the legal console gets things in order.
The Lawyers smell money so they are circling and many will try to represent people who do not have a real claim. The sad part many will get a settlement as it is cheaper to pay them than fight them. They lawyers generally get a 40-45% cut.
I can see the families of anyone killed as a direct result here getting a settlement as well as any major injury but anyone else should be entitled to a new ignition and maybe some kind of extended warranty on the ignition and nothing more.
What I would like to here is more details of the crashes. It would not be to absolve GM in anyway as they were the primary factor. But I would like to know the situation on just how these fatalities happened. I suspect many were killed do to human error after the engine cut out or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. A engine cutting out is not a formula for instant death as it happens all the time. Same for air bags as generally if you belted in normally you survive.
I would just like more information just on what all transpired.
I expect when this all pans out that they will find out GM forced the supplier to cheap out on the ignition just as all MFG have been doing. I am sure someone may have reported it but with the layers inside GM the real question is how far did it get. The reporting up and down in GM was a terrible mess at that time. To be honest it may near Impossible to nail it all down.
GM had enough issue with communication just building better cars let along fixing issues. He is an example of GM thinking back then.
Bob Lutz said he was shown the new Impala around 2004 and he asked the designer if it would not look better with chrome around the windows. The designer said yes but it would put them over budget. He as the designer would they sell better and he said yes. So Lutz said what is better than to break the rules and get in trouble for selling more cars or for being in budget and not selling enough cars. This was how the culture inside did not work even for GM’s benefit let alone in a case like the ignitions.
It really was a holy mess. They have cleaned up a lot of it but there is still a lot to fix yet.
The media circus on this will be relentless! Last night here in Michigan – a local TV station aired a story of a 20 year old who was “superdrunk” and ran off a rain slicked highway hitting a tree doing more than 90 MPH. He, of course, was killed. The airbags in his 2006 Cobalt did not deploy. A tragic story indeed – the takeaway from this per the reporter and his grieving mother was that the airbags not deploying were the cause of his death. Seriously, in the picture they showed of the car, it had accordioned to a total length of about four feet long!!! Was GM culpable in this tragic event?
That is similar to a case we had here in Ohio.
A guy was drunk and ran his S10 Blazer into a tree at 100 MPH and was trapped then burned to death when it caught fire [no pun intended for Blazer].
GM tried to enter into the case the drivers condition and speed but the judge said no and they had to settle for a large sum.
This is the reason I would love to hear the details of the crashes as while a car cutting out is not a good thing generally it is far from a death sentence for the drive. Same for the air bags if you are belted in.
Not that it would clear GM but I suspect driver error played a large roll unless they were in the wrong place at the wrong time when it cut out.
Also I wonder just how many cars really have cut out. I have been around these cars for years. I have worked on them and drive many and know many who have owned them. I have yet to see one with a failed ignition switch. I even spend time on the HHR web forum and the only complaint I have seen there was keys getting stuck in the ignition but it would not shut the car off.
But these are things we may never know and if we did it would change little in the media.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/03/business/in-general-motors-recalls-inaction-and-trail-of-fatal-crashes.html?_r=0
Amber had put herself at considerable risk on July 29, when her car hit a tree around 4 a.m. in Dentsville, Md. She was not wearing her seatbelt, was legally drunk and had reached 69 miles an hour in a 25 m.p.h. zone just before the crash that killed her, according to a crash report.
Around 5 a.m., Ms. Christian, Amber’s birth mother, got a call from Amber’s adoptive mother, Terry DiBattista, telling her that Amber was dead. “I screamed,” Ms. Christian said. “I was so loud that it woke my husband up.”
The air bags in Amber’s car were off when it hit the tree. Her adoptive family hired an investigator who said the air bags did not deploy — in fact, could not deploy because the ignition switch had shut off the electrical system — and the family sued General Motors.
Not to clear GM of the failed part but how many more were similar to this. Other factors may be in play that too often get out. GM may share some of the issue but the driver in this case also was at fault. The belt alone may have saved here life.
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/GM-recall-Woman-s-son-killed-in-crash/25274388
Here is another that was drunk and 90 MPH. Air Bags would not have mattered here.
Like I said this does not clear GM but In many cases there is a lot more to the story.
These feds people say against GM for its buraucracy’s culture or its committee ‘s culture but how a country like US can to request stopping these culture whereas the government don’t better with these committees: waste of time, money and in addition, few actions! Since the corvair, this kind of hearings doesn’t resolve nothing! These politicians are hypocritic and utilize the misfortune of peoples for their reelection! What is the old ( maybe new for several people) gm’s definition or not? the us government works like old GM!
Futhermore, it’s criminal and stupid too to authorize some drivers not to wear the safety belt for individual liberty! In europe, wearing the safety belt is an obligation!
It’s a law in most states here to wear seat belts.