Corker Booed By Workers At GM Plant Ceremony, Takes Credit For Saving Industry... He Opposed Saving

[babylonsister]

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/09/20/corker-gm-plant/

Corker Booed By Workers At GM Plant Ceremony, Takes Credit For Saving Industry That He Opposed Saving


General Motors recently announced that, thanks to federal efforts to keep the American auto industry from going under, it would be able to rehire 483 workers at its Spring Hill, Tennessee plant to manufacture “three variants of Ecotec four-cylinder engines.” The $438 million arrangement will start producing engines for the Buick, Chevrolet, and GMC models by 2011.

As auto blog Jalopnik reports, the plant recently held a ceremony to welcome back the new workers to begin production of the Ecotec engines. Attending the ceremony were three local Republican legislators, Sens. Bob Corker, Lamar Alexander, and Rep. Marsha Blackburn. Ironically, all three of these lawmakers opposed the plans to save General Motors and other U.S. auto companies. This didn’t stop Corker from taking credit for the federal rescue, anyway. At the event he claimed he “contributed to strengthening the auto industry in this country.” Jalopnik reports that “irony of the Republican lawmakers’ presence wasn’t lost on the workers who attended the ceremony; they booed Tennessee Republican Bob Corker”:

Happy days came back Friday to Spring Hill, Tenn., when General Motors announced it would rehire 483 laid-off workers to build four-cylinder engines. On hand to cheer the news: Three Republican lawmakers who opposed the bailout that saved GM.

As part of its $50 billion bankruptcy arranged by the Obama administration, GM shuttered the Spring Hill plant’s assembly line last year, shedding 2,000 jobs in the process, but kept building four-cylinder engines. The new plan calls for $483 million in spending to upgrade the engine line, pending a deal on state incentives.

The irony of the Republican lawmakers’ presence wasn’t lost on the workers who attended the ceremony; they booed Tennessee Republican Bob Corker, and one UAW official made clear from the stage that the union still remembered which politicians had voted to rescue Wall Street but opposed an auto industry bailout.

Jalopnik goes on to note that when the auto industry rescue was being negotiated, Corker was speaking very differently about federal efforts to revive GM. At the time, Corker said that the Obama administration “has decided they know better than our courts and our free market process how to deal with these companies. … This is a major power grab.”

[impik]

1. Bob Crooker. What a bunch of disgusting liars.

[Kdillard]

2. Why am I not a bit surprised to see that the Republicans

would try to take credit for something they vehemently opposed. Thankfully the people who got their jobs back knew better.

[Blue_Tires]

7. +1000

[sad sally]

15. well you see, he was against it until he was for it.

[fasttense]

3. Porker Corker and Lamar are the biggest cons since

the word was invented. Some voters have a memory. And if these 2 shills had had their way those 483 workers would still be out of a job.

[monmouth]

4. Informed GM workers, that's a good thing....n/t

[karynnj]

5. This is about the first time I have read of the Republicans getting called on this

There are many accounts of them taking credit for things in their districts or state that they voted against - and are still demonizing!

[catgirl]

6. I love the title n/t

[uponit7771]

8. It's good that they KNEW who was trying to shut them down

[Phx_Dem]

9. LOVE. IT. Some people aren't as stupid as Republicans think they are.

[Kind of Blue]

10. God, this makes me feel great!

I wish I could have been in that number.
Thanks for posting.
KnR

[AtomicKitten]

11. Unions bust a proverbial cap in the hypocrite's ass.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lm2JI7sGwYI/S4IG0v3RpHI/AAAAAAAAIkQ/Zwuak8Lqwck/s400/hypocritical+repubs.gif

[jesus_of_suburbia]

12. Corker was the candidate who ran against Harold Ford Jr for the TN Senate seat.

I hope these workers didn't vote for Corker(R) over Ford(D). Ford ,for all his faults, is to the left of Corker.

[AC_Mem]

13. Tennessee here...

I'm so disgusted with the republican leadership in Tennessee. They are, each and every one of them, slimeballs.

This was a great story - we will not forget the hypocritical Party of NO.

[craigmatic]

14. I'm glad the workers remember. Hopefully they'll take their outrage to the polls this fall.

[Cha]

16. They opposed it bc Pres Obama was for it...

and I hope their actions come back to haunt them 'till doom's day.

[Timbuk3]

17. Has anyone seen or compiled a list

...of congress-critters who voted FOR the bank bailout but AGAINST rescuing (10s, 100s? of) thousands of jobs depending on the auto industry? How about FOR bailing out Wall Street but against the Recovery Act?

I'd love to shove that list up the teabagger's collective ass.