“Think about it. If you are a member of the union right now, you’re spending all your time negotiating about health care. You need to be spending some time negotiating about wages, but you can’t do it," he said.

In fact, the UAW locked itself into a contract limiting wages and changes to health care, without the ability to negotiate with a threat of strike, until 2015. These stands were agreed to by the union at the prodding of the Obama administration, which demanded that union autoworkers accept lower wages -- as a condition to the bailout that saved Lordstown -- to match non-union workers at Toyota plants in Kentucky and Honda plants in Ohio.

Even so, Lordstown is something of a success story for both the UAW and GM, and Obama's remarks were punctuated with enthusiastic applause.  After winning deep concessions from the UAW in 2007, GM agreed to invest $500 million to retool the plant to make a new fuel-efficient small sedan, the Chevy Cruze.

Obama had nice things to say about the Cruze, which GM expects to get more than 40 miles-per-gallon in highway driving.

"I just sat in the car," Obama said of the Cruze. "I asked for the keys. They wouldn't give me the keys. I was going to take it for a little spin. But it was nice sitting in there. It was a roomy car."

Consumers will not get the keys to a new Cruze, either, until the middle of next year when it arrives in showrooms. In the meantime, Lordstown is stuck building the Cobalt, a budget-minded Chevy and vestige of the "old GM." 

Consumer Reports in its October edition branded the Cobalt as one of the five "cruddiest cheap cars" on the market.

(Writing by Kevin Krolicki. Reuters photo by Larry Downing.)

It’s not yet 9:00 on a Monday morning, and the federal government has already dumped another $30 billion into the tottering financial system. The money goes to insurer American International Group Inc., which just announced a fourth-quarter loss of $61.7 billion — the largest quarterly loss in corporate history.

For those keeping score at home, U.S. taxpayers have now pumped $180 billion into AIG.

Some good news: consumer spending and incomes rose in January, buoyed by salary increases for government employees.

The government will open two hours later in Washington as commuters cope with up to 10 inches of snow. DC residents awaiting more pooh-poohing from their president, who like many northerners is not impressed with the panic that accompanies snowflakes in Washington.

Obama is expected to name Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius as his health secretary today. Sebelius will play a key role in Obama’s efforts to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system, but as the New York Times points out, she didn’t have much luck with that in her home state.

The Senate begins debate on a spending bill that includes a measure that could make it easier to travel to Cuba.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in Egypt for a conference about rebuilding the war-torn Gaza Strip, has said no U.S. funds will go to Hamas, the Islamist group that holds power there.

photo credit: REUTERS/Jason Reed (Snow falls inside the grounds of the White House, March 2)

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Congress is nervous about spending more money.
    
In other news, pigs are flying, hell is freezing over and Democrats and Republicans are cooperating for the good of the country. 
     
Two of those things are actually true. The outgoing Bush administration and the incoming Obama administration are working together to get Congress to approve the second half of the $700 billion financial bailout, so Obama can hand it out quickly if needed. 
     
But Democrats on Capitol Hill want to attach more conditions to banks that accept federal cash — limits on executive pay, more oversight, and more help for homeowners facing foreclosure.  
     
“My colleagues in the Senate will not provide any additional funds unless they are assured by the Obama administration taht these provisions will be a part of it,” Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd said on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
    
Republicans, meanwhile, question whether the money is needed at all.
    
Obama is also urging Congress to approve an additional $800 billion economic stimulus package. Should be a stimulating week.
    
Obama also will discuss trade and the drug war with Mexican President Felipe Calderon today in his first meeting with a foreign leader since his election.
    
Bush, meanwhile, holds a press conference at 9:15 EST.

Photo credit: REUTERS/Laszlo Balogh (Pigs are hung at a butcher shop in Budapest)

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Israel’s military operations in Gaza continue to dominate front pages of major newspapers and morning talk shows. Wall Street is looking for a positive start as oil and gold prices ease back from the price spikes that followed the onset of the Israeli strikes against Hamas.

President George W. Bush remains at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, while President-elect Barack Obama continues his vacation in Hawaii.

GMAC said it will resume financing auto loans following a $5 billion investment from the U.S. Treasury. The latest financial rescue also included a $1 billion loan to General Motors to purchase equity in GMAC.

Extreme weather and the weak economy also taking top spots in holiday week news cycles. A dismal shopping season could take down some malls struggling to service their debt.

Congress will take a closer look at what went wrong on Wall Street beginning next week with a hearing on financier Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50 billion fraud. Meanwhile, the Washington Post takes a close look at why insurance giant AIG needed so much government bailout money.

And for you history buffs - scientists have found out why the 1918 flu virus was so deadly. Three genes allowed it to invade the lungs and cause pneumonia.

Photo credit: Reuters/Hugh Gentry (President-elect Obama carries a little girl at Mid Pacific Country Club in Kailua)

Republicans in Congress effectively said good riddance to President George W. Bush this week, handing their unpopular leader a last big defeat by rejecting a $14 billion auto industry bailout the White House negotiated with Democrats.
 
“No one cares what the White House thinks,” scoffed a senior Republican leadership aide.
 
With Democrat Barack Obama set to replace Bush as president on Jan. 20, the aide said: “There’s frustration among Republicans that Bush doesn’t have a feel for our positions, and relief that he’s leaving.”
 
With Bush at the head of the party the past eight years, the Republicans’ reputation for fiscal conservatism has been shredded by record federal deficits.
 
Republicans, seeking to restore that reputation, say market forces, not U.S. taxpayers, should decide the fate of the auto industry. They charge the bailout would be no more than a downpayment on failure.

 In addition, they argue automakers would be better off to reorganize under bankruptcy protection.

“I’m not surprised Republicans wouldn’t listen to Bush,” a Democratic aide said. “This really shows how weak the president is.”
 
“Republicans figured this was about their political skins and their political message,” the aide added. “But I don’t think they win anything out of this. They just put on a political show with people’s lives at stake.”
 
Bush further upset Republicans Friday when he yielded to mostly Democratic demands and signaled he was willing to provide aid to automakers through the $700 billion bailout he pushed through Congress to help Wall Street.
 
That rescue package generated plenty of voter backlash in the Nov. 4 election, particularly against Republicans.
 
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, who had a tougher time winning re-election than initially anticipated, seemed among those happy to see Bush go.
 
“Our members, in one way, are kind of relieved by the departure of an administration that became unpopular and made it very difficult for us to compete,” McConnell said shortly after the election.

The Republicans’ plight, it seems, is not so very different from that of the automakers’: An unpopular model has made it difficult for them to compete.

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Photo credit: Top: Reuters/Larry Downing (Bush at Texas A&M commencement ceremony Dec. 12) ; Bottom: Reuters/Rebecca Cook (United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger, center, criticizes Republican handling of auto bailout negotiations during news conference in Detroit Dec. 12)

Gulp.
    
Senate brinksmanship kills a proposed $14 billion bailout for Detroit’s struggling “Big Three” automakers, so eyes turn back to the White House. 
    
The Senate is due back in session at 10 a.m. Eastern for what could be a quick round of final recriminations.
    
Analysts say the most immediate hope for help for GMC, Chrysler and Ford is now the Bush administration, which could possibly decide to use financial bailout funding to help the massive car manufacturers — if there’s any money left.
    
Bush, who had resisted this idea in the past, is headed to Texas A&M University where he is due to deliver a commencement address. The White House said this morning it was willing to consider steps to avoid an auto apocalypse.
    
There’s finger pointing in every direction — the UAW union, recalcitrant Republicans, overreaching Democrats, and the lame-duck White House — but nobody seems sure what happens next for companies which say they are responsible for one out of 10 U.S. jobs.
    
Stock futures were down, indicating that benchmark U.S. indexes could open down about 3 percent or more amid a worldwide sell-off. 
    
Meanwhile, whatever attention is left is fixed firmly on Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who is still in office three days after being charged with corruption in connection with allegations that he sought to “sell” the vacant U.S. Senate seat of President-elect Barack Obama.
    
Lots of people seem to want the man out — Obama described himself as “appalled” — but there’s no word on whether Blagojevich  intends to resign. Obama, who has sought to distance himself from the Democratic governor, has no public events scheduled today.

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REUTERS/Yuri Gripas (Bush on South Lawn)

Detroit CEOs drive their hybrid cars over to the House of Representatives for another serving of humble pie this morning. But it’s still not clear if they’ll get the $34 billion bailout they’re looking for, as several senators remained skeptical after yesterday’s testimony on that side of the Capitol. 
     
Testimony before the House Financial Services Committee begins at 9:30 a.m. 

     
The last outstanding Senate race may finally reach a resolution today, as Minnesota could complete its recount in the contest between incumbent Republican Norm Coleman and Democrat Al Franken. 

But any resolution will be preliminary: there are still about 6,000 ballots that have been challenged and will need further review.

     
The Supreme Court will announce what cases it will hear for the year. 
     
The Drug Enforcement Administration has built its own meth lab! The drug-fighting agency holds a ceremony to dedicate its new facility “that will enable DEA chemists to teach students how to synthesize controlled substances, and conduct research into illicit manufacturing methods.” No word on what they do with the final product. 
    
And somewhere over the Pacific, the Pentagon will test its “Star Wars” ballistic missile defense system this afternoon.

REUTERS/Joshua Roberts (Auto CEOs on Capitol Hill)

REUTERS/Eric Miller (Franken, Coleman at campaign appearances)

President-elect Barack Obama will continue to fill out his Team of Rivals when he names New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson as Commerce Secretary at a press conference scheduled for 11:40 a.m. EST For those of you keeping score at home, that means at least three members of his administration will be former Democratic presidential candidates – Richardson, Vice President-elect Joe Biden, and Secretary of State pick Hillary Clinton. 
     
We can’t wait to see what he has in mind for Dennis Kucinich. 
     
On the Hill, lawmakers will continue to weigh U.S. automakers’ restructuring proposals ahead of hearings later this week. The heads of Ford, General Motors and Chrysler, chastened from their skeptical reception last month, are driving from Detroit this time — and they’re confident they’ll get here in good shape. 
     
“Our cars don’t have car trouble,” GM president Fritz Henderson said on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” 

Chrysler officials hold a rally at a dealership in suburban New Carollton, Maryland, to build support for the bailout at 11:30 a.m. 
     
Bigwigs from Honda and Toyota are in town, too. But they’re not here to beg for cash — they’re talking about electric cars and other sustainable technologies at the Convention Center. 
      
Just how bad is this recession? We’ll know more at 2 p.m., when the Fed Releases its “Beige Book,” an antecdotal survey of economic conditions nationwide. 
    
Wall Street doesn’t need more gloomy evidence. Stocks are expected to open lower after Research in Motion, the folks who make the Blackberry, slashed their outlook and mining giant Freeport-McMoRan suspended its divident payments and slashed copper output.

REUTERS/Richard Clement (Richardson and Obama at campaign rally)

REUTERS/Fred Prouser (GM logo at LA auto show)

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson will announce a new program to increase the availability of student loans, credit cards, auto loans and other forms of consumer credit, according to the Wall Street Journal. It will cost between $25 billion and $100 billion, using the $700 billion already allocated through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Paulson speaks at 10 a.m. EST.

President-elect Obama holds another press conference today. Yesterday, he said he’d push for a massive increase in government spending to jolt the country out of a recession; today he’s expected to talk about what cuts he’ll make in the federal budget when he takes office on Jan. 20. 
    
He’ll speak at noon EST.

Other than that, things look pretty quiet as many begin their Thanksgiving holiday early.

Major indexes dropped  to their lowest level since 2003 yesterday and U.S. stock futures are pointing to another plunge today as investors worry about the fate of U.S. carmakers and the spectre of a prolonged economic downturn.
    
Just how bad is it? Well, here’s another sign of the impending apocalypse: the Labor Department reported at 8:30 a.m. EST that jobless claims are at their highest level in 16 years.   

After two days of petitioning Congress, Detroit automakers headed home without the $25 billion check they were angling for. Congressional leaders say a deal is doubtful until next January as they prepare to adjourn for the year.
    
President-elect Barack Obama remains in Chicago, piecing together a new administration that could include Hillary Clinton as secretary of state. His peeps are a little miffed by the leaks out of the Clinton camp, which they tell the New York Times are designed to force them to give her the post. Is this a sign that Obama’s formal rival might “go rogue” if she ends up working for him?
    
Happy Joe Biden’s birthday, everyone! The vice president-elect turns 66 today. 
    
And it’s not even Thanksgiving, but the Christmas Wars are starting up already. Two conservative Christian groups plan to set up a Christmas scene on the sidewalk in front of the Supreme Court as they talk about their plans to promote the display of nativity scenes across the country on private and public property.

Photo: REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke (costumed angels in Berlin)